You Belong With Me
by iluvwillschuester
Summary: Childhood to High school AU. Jim and Pam met when they were five and have been best friends ever since. Now that they're in high school Pam is dating the popular quarterback Roy, and is beginning to change. She's convinced that nobody liked the old Pam but she's wrong...Jim did. This is my 1st Jam fic, please read and review!
1. Engravings & Promises

Chapter 1-

_**Author's Note- Hello everyone! This is my 1**__**st**__** attempt at writing Fan Fiction for The Office (I'm currently writing 2 stories for Glee). So please be kind in your reviews. Alright so this is a childhood to high school AU, which means I'm going to be doing just sort of one shots of their important childhood moments up until high school where the real story begins. If you don't get what I'm saying just bear with me, it'll all make sense soon. Since this is my 1**__**st**__** fanfic for this show, reviews are very much needed. So please, please review! Okay I'm going to stop rambling now…**___

"Pammy, come on. We have to go sweetie," Mrs. Beesly said to her five-year-old daughter.

Pam walked over and grabbed her pink Converse sneakers. "Penny, I need help. Tie my shoes, please," the little girl asked. Pam's older sister Penny groaned but walked over and quickly tied Pam's shoes. Pam's father, Mark Beesly walked in, ready to go.

"Okay, I want everyone to be respectful. The Halperts were nice enough to invite us over for a barbecue. We're new in the neighborhood so let's make a good impression," Mr. Beesly said. The family of four walked out the back door and began heading towards the Halpert's house. Since they only lived five houses away, they were walking there.

"Daddy, do they have any kids?" Pam asked, curious.

"Yeah, they have three boys. I think one of them is your age," Mr. Beesly told her.

"Yes, their names are Tom, Pete, and Jim, I think. And I'm pretty sure Jim's the one that's your age," Mrs. Beesly added.

"Is there anybody my age?" Penny asked. She had just turned nine a month ago.

"I'm not sure. I think Betsy said that the other two were seven and ten. So you'll still have someone to talk to," Mrs. Beesly assured Penny. Penny nodded, and motioned to the house. "Well, looks like we're here," Mrs. Beesly continued.

They walked up to the door together, and Pam rang the doorbell. A man and a woman appeared, behind them were three boys. "Hi Mark, Helene…so these must be your two girls?" Mr. Halpert asked.

"Yeah, this is Penny and Pam. Pam's five and Penny's nine. How old are your boys?" Mr. Beesly replied.

"I'm Tom and I'm ten," the oldest boy said. He had dark brown curly hair that fell over his green eyes. "This is Pete, he's seven," Tom continued, motioning to the younger boy. This one had an overgrown buzz cut that was a dark brown also, and had a few of his bottom teeth missing. Pete waved to them. "Oh yeah. And he's Jim, he's only five," Tom finished. The youngest boy had caramel colored hair that was messily tousled, it seemed to stick up in wings behind his ears. Jim had blue-green eyes that resembled an ocean and a shy smile.

"Well, why don't you guys come on back? There's a swing set and a tree house in the back, if the kids want to play," Betsy Halpert said. The two families walked around the house to the backyard.

"Wow, nice backyard," Mr. Beesly commented.

"Thanks. So where did you guys come from again?" Gerald Halpert asked.

"We're from Michigan," Helene answered.

"That's cool, pretty cold up there though. Well you'll love Scranton," Mr. Halpert said. "Hey, boys. Why don't you guys show these two ladies around," he continued.

Pam and Penny walked over to the three boys. "Well, I'm going to go inside and play Xbox. Want to come?" Tom asked, walking with Pete back to the house. Penny glanced at Pam and then back at Tom.

"Sure," she said, and followed the two older boys inside.

"Hi, I'm Jim," the little boy said to Pam. He was wearing cargo khaki shorts and a blue t-shirt with a dinosaur on the front.

"Hi, I'm Pam. I like your t-shirt. Dinosaurs are really cool," Pam said. She had red hair that was up in two pigtails, and was wearing a purple t-shirt and brown shorts.

"Thanks, do you really like dinosaurs?" Jim asked, Pam nodded quickly. "Okay. Do you want to see some? They're in my tree house," Jim offered.

"Yeah, that would be cool. Do you live in your tree house?" Pam asked, as they approached the tree house. It was about ten feet above them and looked well built. There was a ladder attached to the tree trunk.

Jim looked at her and smiled. "No, I wish. My mom says I have to live in my room I share with Pete. So, in daytime I come out here a lot," he replied. Jim walked over to the ladder and put his small hands on the first rung. "Come on, Pam. I have a lot to show you," he told her, and began to climb.

Pam was a little nervous to climb but once she saw Jim's smiling face at the top, she decided to start climbing. Once she was one rung away from the platform, Jim reached a small hand out to her. Pam grabbed his hand and he helped her up.

"Thanks, so where are the dinosaurs?" Pam asked, looking around the inside of the tree house. There was a lime green carpet on the floor, three beanbags, and a few boxes filled with toys. Jim dug through the first toy box and pulled out six dinosaurs.

"Here they are. So do you want to play?" Jim asked, holding a green t-rex.

"Yeah, I have some dinosaurs at my house too," Pam said.

"So you can just pick whatever one you want," Jim told her, motioning to the dinosaurs. Pam picked up a blue one, and began moving it across the floor. Jim kept the green one and began moving it along with Pam's.

"Are you going to school this year?" Pam asked.

"Yeah, it's my first time. My mom says it's in two weeks," Jim said, while making two dinosaurs fight each other.

"How far away is two weeks?" Pam asked, while making her dinosaur join in on the fight.

"I don't know. Wow, your dinosaur is strong," Jim remarked, as Pam's dinosaur knocked over two of Jim's.

"Thanks," Pam said.

"You're welcome," Jim replied. He turned around and flipped over a few comic books that were strewn on the floor. "Do you want some candy?" Jim whispered.

Pam's eyes widened, there was a pretty big pile of candy underneath the comics. "Does your mommy know that's there?" she asked, curiously.

"No, it's Tom's candy. He shares with me and Pete, so it's a secret. I'm not 'pposed to tell anyone. So you promise you won't tell anyone?" Jim explained.

"Yeah," Pam replied, nodding.

"Okay, but you have to high five me, so I know you promised," Jim told her. He reached out his left hand and Pam put out her right and they high fived each other. "Okay, so pick out one piece of candy, so that Tom doesn't get mad," he continued.

Pam grabbed a Reese's and so did Jim. Jim placed the comic books back over the mound of candy and opened the chocolate. "Reese's is my favorite," Pam said.

"Mine too! So do you like your new house?" Jim asked, taking a bite.

"Yeah, I get my own room. It's so big," Pam said, motioning with her hands.

"Cool, my room's big too. But I have to share with Pete, Tom gets his own room cause he's the oldest," Jim said, finishing the candy. He had chocolate all around his mouth and chin.

"Oh, are Tom and Pete nice?" Pam asked, placing her wrapper on the ground besides Jim's.

"Sort of. Sometimes Tom is mean to me and Pete is too," Jim said.

"Jim! Pam! It's time for dinner!" Mrs. Halpert yelled up to them.

"Okay, mom. We're coming," Jim replied. He started to go down the ladder and Pam followed. When they got to the bottom Jim said, "Come on, they have hamburgers!"

Pam stood beside her new friend and felt a small, clammy hand slip into hers. She looked down, Jim's fingers were interlocked with hers. Pam pulled away for a second.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to hurt- Jim started to say, but Pam put her hand on top of his once more.

"My hand was sweaty," Pam explained, with a smile. Jim smiled back, and they walked back to the patio hand in hand.

The parents looked up and smiled at the sight of the kids bonding so well. There were two tables; one for the kids and one for the adults. Jim took a seat beside Pam, and waited for the parents to start. "Jim, honey, were you eating chocolate up there?" Mrs. Halpert asked.

Jim shook his head. "No," he replied, glancing at Pam nervously. He was oblivious to the fact that chocolate was covering the bottom portion of his face.

"Okay, then," his mom said, while the parents and older siblings laughed. Jim and Pam just looked at each other and smiled.

Mrs. Beesly handed Jim and Pam their plates and cups. They had hamburgers, watermelon slices, and potato chips. "So, is everybody getting along?" Mr. Halpert asked the kids.

Jim and Pam smiled and nodded, but Tom, Pete, and Penny all looked at each other in disgust. Everyone guessed things weren't going too well for the older three. The parents began talking amongst themselves and Tom and Pete did the same, leaving Penny just sitting there and staring straight ahead. "Hey Pam, want to see something cool?" Jim asked, grabbing two potato chips.

"Sure," Pam said.

Jim put the two potato chips in his mouth so that it looked like a duck bill. Pam started laughing, "You have to show me how to do that!" she said. Jim nodded, and swallowed the chips.

"You just put one chip up and the other down, then you put them on top of each other. Then you put them in your mouth but softly or else they'll crumble," Jim said, while they both followed the instructions together. They giggled, when they looked at each other's duck bills. By now, everyone was done eating.

"Why don't you kids go play?" the parents suggested. All the kids got up and left the table, heading back toward the grass.

"Want to go back to the tree house?" Pam asked.

"Yeah, I have 'nother thing to show you," Jim said. They ran towards the ladder and hurriedly climbed up. Pam sat down in one of the bean bags and Jim sat down in another. "Okay, so Tom showed me yesterday how to make an engraving," Jim said, stretching out the word engraving.

"What's an engraving?" Pam asked, curiously.

"You take this stick," Jim moved a sweatshirt and picked up a stick that was underneath it, one end was really sharp, "and you just write whatever you want on the wood," Jim explained.

"That's really cool. Did you guys do any yesterday?" Pam asked.

"Yeah," Jim replied. He pointed to the ceiling, Tom was written in neat handwriting, followed by Pete in slanted writing, then lastly Jim, in big, messy handwriting.

"That's so cool. I wish I had a tree house," Pam said. Jim leaned forward and grabbed the pencil-like stick, and twirled it in his small hands.

"I was thinking if you wanted to, maybe we could make an engraving," Jim suggested, hopefully.

"Yeah, where should we put it?" Pam asked, eagerly,

There was a sole picture on the wall, of the boys smiling faces. Jim gently removed the picture and set it on the ground. "How about behind the picture? Nobody could see it, so it would be extra special," Jim commented.

"That's a great spot," Pam agreed. Jim held the stick in his hand and slowly wrote his name in big, kindergarten-like letters. Then he handed the stick to Pam, she wrote her name. Her handwriting was smaller and a little neater.

Jim stared at it like it was the greatest thing on the planet. "Perfect," he said. Then he gingerly put the picture back on the wall.

"Thanks for letting me make an engraving. It was really nice of you," Pam said, wondering if she would ever have another friend better than the little boy with the caramel hair, standing before her.

"No problem. After all, you're probably like my best friend already," Jim confessed. He looked at her smiling, his ocean- colored eyes lighting up with the smile.

"You're my best friend too," Pam said.

"Really? Thanks, I've always wanted to have a best friend from Michigan," Jim said. Pam laughed at his joke.

"Kids, it's time to go," Mrs. Beesly called up the ladder.

"Okay, I'm coming," Pam yelled down. Jim and Pam slowly and carefully climbed down the ladder, smiling the whole time.

"Thanks for having us," Mr. Beesly said.

"No problem, we should get together again soon," Mrs. Halpert said, as the two families began to walk towards the front of the house.

"Do you want to play again tomorrow?" Jim asked Pam.

"Yeah, can you come to my house after breakfast?" Pam replied.

"Yeah, I'll try," Jim said.

"Promise?" Pam asked.

"Promise," Jim responded and high- fived her to seal the promise.

"Come on, Pam," her dad called. Jim waved good-bye and Pam ran up to her parents and began walking back to their house. Jim stood there watching them make the short trek back home, he swore he could've seen Pam look back at him and smile a few times. Little did he know, she was telling her parents all about her time with Jim, how they were best friends and hanging out with him tomorrow.

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Jim sat up in his bed, and rubbed his eyes. He walked down to the kitchen, his mom was in there. Jim's dad worked so he was already gone. "Hey, sleepyhead! How did you sleep?" his mom asked.

"Good. Can I go to Pam's after breakfast?" he asked, walking over to the table. Mrs. Halpert had already prepared a bagel for him, and Tom and Pete were playing basketball outside.

"Hon, you just woke up," Mrs. Halpert replied, smiling. Last night after the Beeslys had left, Jim told her all about his time with Pam. They had really hit it off, so she decided to make an exception.

"I know. But I promised her, we even high- fived. Please?" Jim pleaded. He looked up to her with his big blue- green eyes sparkling.

"Okay, I guess so. I'll walk you over there after breakfast but you have to get dressed first," Mrs. Halpert said.

"Yes! Thanks so much, mommy!" Jim said. His smile was so big, Besty Halpert could've swore it met his eyes.

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"Mommy, can Jim come over today?" Pam asked, as she ate her cereal. Penny, her mom and her were the only ones seated at the table, her dad worked and had already left.

"Sure, when's he coming?" Mrs. Beesly asked, smiling. There was something special about Jim, she sensed it last night.

"Soon, he promised he'd come after breakfast," Pam told her.

"Okay, well you better hurry. You don't want to be in pajamas when he comes," her mom said. Pam nodded, although she honestly couldn't care less what she was wearing, as long as she was with him. She got up and took her bowl to the sink.

"I'm going to go get dressed," Pam said. She walked into her room and rummaged through her clothing drawers. Pam grabbed a gray t-shirt with a multi-colored toucan on the front and jean shorts. She quickly pulled on the clothes and wandered into the playroom. Pam liked to play with dolls but she also really enjoyed playing with dinosaurs, truck, and superheroes too. She figured Jim would like the latter, so she made a pile of all the toys they could play with together. Ding- dong! The doorbell rang. Pam got up and bolted towards the door, her mom followed closely behind. Pam pulled open the door and there was Jim and his mom.

"Hi, guys. Pam was telling me that Jim wanted to play for a few hours. Would you like to come in for coffee?" Mrs. Beesly asked.

"Sure. He has been so eager to see Pam," Mrs. Halpert said, and the moms laughed. Jim and Pam just looked at each other and smiled.

"Hi, you kept your promise," Pam said, grinning.

"Of course I did. That's what best friends are for," Jim responded, wearing his signature goofy smile, which Pam returned. Pam knew Jim was going to be a friend she would never forget.

_**So…what did you think? For the next chapter should I just do the 1**__**st**__** day of school or continue from here and then 1**__**st**__** day of school in the same chapter? Please let me know…if you have any suggestions or questions just pm me or review. And please, please review, this is my first Jam fic and I want to know if I'm doing a good job. **____** The next chapter will be posted no longer than a week away.**_


	2. First Day of School

Chapter 2- The First Day of School

_**Author's Note- Hey everyone! So, since my reviewers wanted me to just do the first day of school; that's what I've decided to do. Thank you to the people who reviewed! You guys are awesome, you made my day! Anyways this is Jim and Pam's first day of kindergarten…so cute. Enjoy! **___

It was a breezy September morning and for all the kids in Scranton, it was the first day of school. The leaves danced along the grass as the wind blew them around. Inside the Halpert household, people were busily getting prepared for school and work. "Jim, Pete wake up. It's your first day," Mrs. Halpert said. Pete groaned, as a seven-year- old, he was not looking forward to returning to school. Jim breathed softly, the younger boy was still sleeping. Mrs. Halpert walked over to him, and sat down on the side of his bed. She gently caressed his cheek, "Jim, honey, it's time for your first day of school. You don't want to make Pam wait, do you?" she asked.

At this he arose from his sleep, "Pam's here, now?" Jim asked. He rubbed his tired eyes and sat up, his light brown hair sticking up in tufts. Pam and Jim had become increasingly close over the last two weeks. Ever since the barbecue they'd hung out almost every day, the two were inseparable.

"No, she's not here yet. But she'll be here at eight with her mom; we're going to walk to school with them. So, hurry up, I'm making pancakes," Mrs. Halpert said, and then she walked out of the room. Jim yawned and got out of bed. He walked over to his dresser and rummaged through his clothes. Jim pulled out a green t-shirt with a shark on the front and a pair of brown cargo shorts. He quickly changed his clothes, putting his shirt on backwards.

"Jim, your shirt's on backwards. You should fix that, you don't want to look dumb on the first day. If you are then the older kids will make fun of you and Pam," Pete said, as he ran a comb through his hair.

Jim looked down and saw that his t-shirt was indeed backwards. He took if off and put it back on the right way. "What older kids, Pete?" the little boy asked, curiously.

"You know the bigger ones. The bigger they are the meaner," Pete said, smiling. He was enjoying scaring Jim before his big day.

"Well, I'm not scared. I'll have Pam with me…and I'll protect us," Jim told Pete. He was a little nervous but he knew that with Pam by his side, he could do anything.

"Boys, breakfast time!" Mrs. Halpert called. The three boys walked into the kitchen and took their seats at the table. They ate their pancakes while Mrs. Halpert peppered them with questions.

"Mom, we've gone to school before. I'm going into fifth grade this year," Tom said, confidently.

"I know but Jim hasn't," their mom replied.

"He has Pam, he'll be fine," Tom said, while Jim nodded. Just then the doorbell rang, Jim raced to the door. He opened the door and greeted Pam and her mom, "Hi Pam, hi Mrs. Beesly. My mom will be here in a second," Jim said. He then picked up his backpack and put on a blue Gap hoodie. "Mom, Pam's here!" he yelled.

"Okay, okay, I'm coming," Mrs. Halpert said. She appeared with Tom and Pete following closely behind. "Hi Helene, sorry for the wait, I just had to get Tom and Pete ready. They're walking with the Smith twins from down the street." Mrs. Beesly nodded understanding. "Alright, everyone have their stuff?" she asked. All the kids nodded, "Okay, then let's go," Mrs. Halpert said.

The group left the house and Tom and Pete walked to their friends, then the parents walked behind Jim and Pam. "So, hi Jim," Pam said smiling.

"Hi Pam, are you excited? Because I'm really excited," Jim asked, grinning. Pam laughed, Jim had been talking non-stop about school and how they'd see each other every day for the past few days.

"Sort of. I'm a little nervous," Pam confessed, and slipped her hand into Jim's. He gladly accepted holding her hand with a smile. Whenever Pam felt nervous, it felt better to hold hands with Jim. When his slightly bigger hand was intertwined with hers, she felt calmer and stronger.

"It's okay. I have an idea, how 'bout whenever you get nervous just look at me?" Jim suggested. Pam looked at him, his hair was messy as usual and was blowing in the wind, his eyes sparkled in the light, and he was smiling his kind-hearted smile. This was an image she wanted to burn into her mind, so whenever she got scared or sad; she could look at Jim and remember that not everything is that bad.

"I like that idea," Pam replied, and gave his hand a quick squeeze.

"Kids we're here," the parents called out from behind them. The two turned to face the school in front of them.

"It's so big…like a castle," Jim said, staring in awe. Pam gulped, "It's okay, we won't get lost. I promise," Jim promised. He held his hand out for a high five and Pam returned it happily. Their moms took a picture of them in front of the school's big oak tree. Though Jim and Pam didn't know, they had also been taking pictures of the two walking hand in hand. Their parents walked them into the building, said their good byes and then departed. Their teacher Ms. Cunningham introduced herself and was now having the kids go around in a circle, saying their name and a talent of theirs. The circle had now reached Pam.

She nervously glanced at Jim, who was sitting beside her, he flashed her a thumbs-up. "My name is Pam and a talent of mine is drawing," she said.

"Very good, I look forward to seeing your drawings in class," Ms. Cunningham said. She motioned to Jim; it was now his turn.

"Hi, my name is Jim and my talent is… making faces," Jim informed the kids, he made what Pam called his 'weirded-out' face for the class. All the kids and Ms. Cunningham laughed. Jim just smiled at Pam.

"Very nice, Jim," Ms. Cunningham said, laughing. The rest of the morning continued smoothly and it was now lunch time. It was nice out, so the class got to eat outside. Jim and Pam grabbed their lunch boxes and sat under the oak tree they got their picture taken in front of.

"You were right Jim. This is really fun," Pam said, as she chewed on her sandwich.

"Yeah, I like Ms. Cunningham. She's nice," Jim replied, eating his apple. The crunchy leaves rustled across the ground.

Pam nodded, agreeing. "Listen to the leaves, they rustle," Pam said, smiling. Jim and Pam listened for a quick second, until Jim interrupted the silence.

"I have an idea for how we can listen to them better," Jim commented. He lied down, flat on his back with his arms outstretched and his chin pointed towards the sky. Pam followed him and they both lay in silence just listening to the leaves rustle. They looked at the sky and it seemed like the world was theirs. Jim's hand was just a centimeter away from Pam's; he slowly took her hand in his. Jim tilted his head sideways and gazed at Pam, who was also looking at him. The leaves tickled his ears; the moment was absolutely perfect for the two of them. Jim wanted to stay in this moment for the rest of his life with his best friend by his side.

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The school bell rang, it was time to leave. Jim and Pam had a great first day and couldn't wait 'till tomorrow to come back. The pair ran outside to their moms and hugged them. They quickly answered a few questions and then they began walking ahead. They knew there would be more questions coming later but right now they just wanted each other's company. "So, what was your favorite part of the day?" Pam asked, holding Jim's hand once again.

"Hearing the leaves," Jim replied, truthfully. He knew that would be a moment of his life he'd never forget.

"Mine too," Pam said, smiling at him. "I also liked when you made that funny face for the whole class," Pam continued, laughing at the memory.

"Yeah, that was funny. I like making faces though," Jim told her.

"I know. My mom says your faces are very expressive."

"She does? What does expressive mean?"

"I don't know. But she likes you, so I'm pretty sure it's good."

"Okay. Want to come over and play in the tree house for a little bit?" Jim asked.

"Sure, race you there," Pam replied. The two ran off into Jim's tree house, to begin another memory.

_**So what did you think? Please let me know. Was the end too cheesy? Was there not enough dialogue? These are the kind of things I'd really like to know in a review. Thanks again for the reviews I got last time. Please review! **___


	3. Pam's Birthday

Chapter 3- Pam's Birthday

_**Author's Note- Hey everybody! I'm so sorry that I haven't updated in almost three weeks, I feel so bad. Thank you to the two people who reviewed the last chapter! You guys are so fetch! (Mean Girls anyone?) Also to the person who followed thanks. I really appreciate the reviews a lot, I'm new to Jam fanfiction and I'm still getting used to the archives. Also, chances are if you review my story I'll review yours. Anyways this chapter is about Pam's 7**__**th**__** birthday. Enjoy! **___

Jim peered out the window and then at his sleeping nine-year-old brother. He looked at the clock again; it was 10:00 at night. Jim should've been in bed an hour ago but he couldn't fall asleep, tomorrow was Pam's birthday. She was turning seven; he had turned seven a month ago. Jim was really excited; they were going to an apple orchard and then back to Pam's for cake. He wanted to get her something really special. For his seventh birthday Pam gave him a leather necklace with a four-leaf-clover pendant on it. Jim hadn't taken it off since, and had attained a habit of touching it whenever he got nervous. She told him it was good luck, and he decided to wear it forever. As the young boy thought of Pam; he looked at the photo frames on his nightstand. There was a picture of the two of them grinning while at the beach on a combined family trip, from four months ago. The other two were from their first day of kindergarten; in front of the oak tree, and his favorite; holding hands while walking. This one was taken from behind. Jim touched the necklace one last time before drifting off to sleep.

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"Happy seventh birthday, Pam!" Mrs. Beesly exclaimed, while sitting around the breakfast table eating pancakes. Pam smiled, in an hour they'd pick up Jim and head to the orchard. After breakfast, Pam walked into her room and picked out an outfit for the day. As she pulled her auburn hair back into a ponytail, she thought about the day ahead of her.

"Pam! Hurry, honey we have to get Jim!" Mr. Beesly, called from the hallway.

Pam emerged from her room with her eleven-year-old sister Penny. "Why does Pam's boyfriend have to come?" Penny asked, smacking bubble gum simultaneously.

"He's not my boyfriend, he's my best friend. And he's going because I want him to," Pam said. By now, she was used to Penny accusing Jim of being her boyfriend. The Beeslys hurried out the door and got into their Honda minivan.

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"Jim, be careful!" Pam exclaimed. They had arrived at the orchard about an hour ago and were in the middle of a hay maze. Jim had climbed on top of a hay stack to see where the exit was, and tumbled to the ground.

"I'm okay. The exit is that way!" Jim said, pointing to the left. The two weaved in between people and hay barrels and made their way out. Mr. and Mrs. Beesly were waiting at the exit.

"Good job, guys! Do you want to start picking apples now?" Mrs. Beesly asked.

"Yeah, let's go," Pam suggested, her hair blowing in the wind. It was a crisp November day and it was beautiful out. Jim nodded and Mr. Beesly led the way to the apple trees. They were all handed a plastic bag to fill to the brim with apples. A nearby employee instructed them on the best way to pick apples, and then they began walking toward the colorful trees. "Come on, Jim," Pam called, guiding him towards a tree with golden-green apples dangling above their heads.

"This one's good, we can reach most of them," Jim said, picking the nearest apple off the tree and dropping it in his bag.

"You can get a lot more than me, you're taller," Pam replied, grabbing apples closer to the ground.

"Sometimes I wish I was shorter."

"Really? Why?" Pam's eyes filled with curiosity, Jim had never admitted to this before. That's why she liked hanging out with him, every day she learned new things about him. Stuff that she wanted to memorize and keep in the section of her heart labeled Jim.

"So that the monkey bars would be more fun, I wouldn't be so close to the ground," Jim admitted. Pam laughed, it was funny but true.

"Interesting, while we're on the subject of wishing, I wish that we both grow up to be spy partners," Pam said.

Jim's eyes bugged out and he flashed her a wide grin. "Me too! We always pretend to be spies but it would be so cool to actually be one." Jim loved how they both had so much in common without realizing it.

"And we'd have code names!" Pam suggested.

"Yeah, the first letter of our name and our age. So I'd be J7 and you'd be P7, it sounds professional," Jim responded. Pam nodded eagerly.

"Definitely, and we'd have all this cool spy gear. We'd also be the system's two best spies obviously," Pam said.

"Plus, we would get to travel the world together." Jim had always been fascinated with all the different cultures and countries they learned about in school.

"Of course, that way we'd never lose touch with each other. I can't imagine not having you as my best friend when we're old," Pam told him.

"Yeah, you're never getting rid of me, Beesly," Jim said, although he laughed, he was a hundred percent serious. He knew Pam wasn't going to be a friend that he could just easily forget about.

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Jim and the Beeslys spent two more hours at the apple orchard before going home with five bags of apples. They were now crowded around the kitchen table, eating chocolate cake, Pam's favorite. Pam's parents had already given her their gifts; a Barbie doll and a set of walkie-talkies that were accessible from a mile away. Which was perfect for her and Jim, they decided to keep one in each house that way they could talk to each other at all times. Penny gave her a green Gap sweatshirt. Now, it was Jim's turn to give her his present.

Jim gave her a small box with purple wrapping paper and a card on top. "Um, you should read the card first," he said. Pam nodded and opened it. There was a drawing of her and Jim playing catch on one side and on the other a note in Jim's big handwriting. Pam began silently reading his birthday card. _Happy 7__th__ Birthday Pam! I hope you've had a great day so far. Seven is a cool number. You're my best friend ever and the best that I could ever wish for. I hope the seventh year of our lives is as great as the last two that we've spent together. Love, Jim_ Pam looked up from the card and smiled at Jim. She began to tear off the wrapping paper, there was a blue box underneath. Pam opened the box and inside was a blue and red macramé bracelet; her favorite colors. "Thanks so much Jim, I love it," Pam exclaimed smiling. She slipped the bracelet on her wrist and looked over at his; he was also wearing the same one. "Hey, when did you put that on?" she asked.

"Like a few seconds ago, I thought it'd be cool for us both to have one. You know as a symbol of our friendship," Jim said.

"Awesome. Jim, this is the best birthday ever," Pam said, smiling and admiring their bracelets.

_**Okay what did you think? Please, please review! I really apologize for the wait for this chapter, I feel real bad. In the next chapter they'll be nine, just to let you know. And I promise I'll update sooner! R&R! **___


	4. Partners in Crime

Chapter 4- Partners in Crime

_**Author's Note- Hey everybody! I'd like to say thank you very much to Crentist, who was my only reviewer last chapter. Your review was very kind and yeah, I know a lot of you are waiting for the high school chapters but…we'll get there soon! After a few more chapters, I think. Since I only got one review last chapter, I would appreciate it if you guys would review a little more often…I mean I don't think the story's that bad. In this chapter, Jim and Pam are nine and in fourth grade. Here's the chapter, enjoy! **___

"Are you sure we won't get in trouble, Jim?" Pam asked, as she put the Jell-O molds back into her backpack.

"Well, I'm pretty sure and if we do…well, I'll say it was all my idea," Jim replied, as he put their creations back into Mrs. Scully's desk.

"Nah, we can share the blame. After all, it's going to be pretty cool if we can pull this off," Pam said, with a grin. Jim was the master prankster in their grade and she sometimes assisted him. He only got in trouble sometimes, a few calls home here and there. But most of the teachers thought Jim was a good kid that knew how to push people's buttons.

Jim glanced at the classroom clock and then back at his best friend. "We should go back outside right now, we don't want Mrs. Scully to find us," Jim suggested.

"Okay," Pam responded. They closed the desk drawers, shut off the lights, and locked the door. Jim had gotten them in the room by jimmying the lock with a paper clip. The pair quickly made their way down the hall, slinking around like spies in their favorite cartoons.

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Mrs. Scully's class of rambunctious fourth graders made their way into the classroom after lunch recess. The kids filed into the coat room and dried their shoes off from the spring mud. The students were all seated at their desks after a few minutes, Pam and Jim sat beside each other, luckily. "How long do you think before she notices?" Pam asked.

"I don't know, hopefully a few minutes," Jim answered, wearing a mischievous smile that matched Pam's own.

"Okay class, settle down. We're going to be working on math for the afternoon, so take out your folders and homework from last night," Mrs. Scully said.

"Did you do the homework?" Jim asked, hopefully. Jim almost never did his homework unless it was a project or worth a lot of points.

"Yeah, but you need to hurry and get the answers before she gets to our row," Pam said. She slid her worksheet halfway onto Jim's desk and made sure half was still on hers, so that it wouldn't be obvious that they were copying.

"Thanks," Jim muttered, as he began scribbling the answers down on his sheet.

The classroom chatter started up again as the kids pulled their homework out. "Children, just because I've stopped talking, doesn't mean you can start," Mrs. Scully scolded. "Let me just get the lesson out and a pencil, so that we may begin." As the teacher bent down and started to open her top desk drawer, Jim and Pam exchanged glances. Jim began a countdown with his fingers and Pam had to stifle a laugh. Just as he reached one, it came. "What is this?!" Mrs. Scully yelled, holding up a stapler floating in Jell-O on a plate along with her checking pen and coffee mug.

The whole class burst into fits of giggles, they all knew it had to be the work of Jim. Jim and Pam laughed the hardest and high-fived each other. "This is awesome, it even beats the dead bees from last week," Jim whispered.

"Who did this? I can assure you'll be sorry. Whoever is the mastermind behind this juvenile prank will be in big trouble. This isn't funny," the teacher snapped, she was looking at Jim the whole time. Of course, nobody came forward.

"James Halpert, did you do this?" she asked, suspiciously.

"No, ma'am," Jim replied, biting his lip to keep from laughing.

"Did you have help?" Mrs. Scully asked, eyeing Pam.

"I didn't do it but whoever did probably needed help. I mean because this obviously the greatest prank ever," Jim replied. He looked at Pam, Pam was mouthing 'we're dead.'

"James Halpert and Pamela Beesly please go down to the main office," Mrs. Scully ordered, losing her patience.

Jim and Pam got up from their seats and shuffled out the door. "Boy, was she mad," Pam exclaimed.

"I know! I think when she's mad, she gets even fatter," Jim said, as they strolled down the hall.

"I think you're right. I just hope I don't get grounded so that we can still hang out," Pam said.

"Yeah, that would stink."

"It was an awesome prank though."

"We're here," Jim said, pulling the door open for the two of them. They entered the office, Mrs. Lockwood, the secretary sat behind the front desk.

"Here to see Mrs. Gaffery?" she asked, she knew Jim and had seen Pam a few times before.

"Yeah," they said, in unison.

"Go right in," Mrs. Lockwood replied, motioning towards the door.

They entered Mrs. Gaffrey's office, she was the principal. And in Jim's opinion she and Mrs. Scully were the worst teachers in the world. "Mrs. Scully sent us," Jim explained, as they both took a seat.

"Surprise, surprise," Mrs. Gaffrey said, her words dripping with sarcasm. "What did you do this time, Jim? And I assume you had help?" she asked, motioning to Pam.

"Yeah, Pam helped me. But…we didn't really do anything wrong," Jim answered.

"Mm-hmm," Mrs. Gaffrey looked at her computer screen. "In her email to me that she sent just moments ago, Mrs. Scully told me her side of the story. I quote '_Jim Halpert and Pam Beesly have once again caused a disruption in my classroom. Today after we arrived from lunch, I asked the students to get out their math supplies. While they were doing that, I opened my desk drawer to get my own things. To my horror, I found that three of my personal items had been put in Jell-O. My stapler, checking pen, and favorite coffee mug were floating in blue Jell-O on a plate. I asked Jim if he did this and he said no but did say whoever did probably needed help. I know they did this. Please punish them accordingly.' _So you're telling me, that you two had nothing to do with this?"

"Absolutely not," Jim said, while Pam nodded.

Their teacher decided to take a different approach to get the kids to confess. "Well, that's a bummer. Whoever did this must be really talented and you guys are obviously not talented enough for this type of joke," Mrs. Gaffrey said, smiling.

"Actually," Pam started, she looked at Jim for approval, he urged her to go on. "Jim and I did do it."

Mrs. Gaffrey sighed; she knew they were the culprits. "Kids, this is unacceptable behavior. It's not appropriate to break into your teacher's things and put them in Jell-O. How did you even do this?" she asked.

"Well, actually the whole plan was very top-secret but I think I can tell you. Pam and I went during recess and unlocked the classroom door with a paper clip, to get in. Then we basically put the items we stole yesterday back in her desk. We basically just upgraded her supplies," Jim explained, beaming at his accomplishment.

"You guys can't keep doing these antics; you'll keep getting in trouble. As a result of your actions, I'm going to have to call both of your parents," Mrs. Gaffrey said. "You guys can go now, and Jim?" The young boy turned his head. "Don't rope Pam into being partners in crime again."

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**Sent from: Pam Beesly, 4:34 PM, Thursday, April 29****th**

**To: Jim Halpert**

**Subject: Grounded!**

_Hi Jim-_

_I still can't believe we're both grounded until Sunday, at least it's Thursday already. My mom said I'm not allowed to hang out with you until then or talk to you on the phone…can you believe it? All because of one epic prank!_

_-Pam_

**Sent from: Jim Halpert, 5:12 PM, Thursday, April 29****th**

**To: Pam Beesly**

**Subject: New Idea**

_Hey Pam-_

_I miss hanging out with you after school already and my parents grounded me for the same things too. At least we have email. So, I was thinking for next week…maybe some still-alive goldfish on top of Mrs. Scully's keyboard? _

_-Jim_

_**So… what did you think? I hope you liked it and please review! The next chapter will be coming soon, promise! They'll probably be like eleven or twelve in the next chapter. R&R! **___


	5. Scranton Sweets

Chapter 5- Scranton Sweets

_**Author's Note- Hey everybody! I'm sorry I haven't updated in two weeks…really. I kept meaning to but got caught up in my two Glee stories. In this chapter Jim and Pam are eleven, in the next one they'll be thirteen, and then…fifteen years old and sophomores in high school! I know, we're almost there, don't worry high school is right around the corner. Thanks to everybody who reviewed last chapter! Your reviews were very kind and I enjoyed reading every one of them. Here's the chapter, I hope you like it! **___

Jim Halpert and Pam Beesly were sitting in their regular booth at Scranton Sweets; the local diner and ice cream shop. Jim sipped on his chocolate milkshake and looked up at Pam, who was still beaming.

"What?" Jim asked, running a hand through his unruly hair, the strands now glistening with sweat.

"Nothing, you just were so awesome out there today," Pam said. Jim's sixth grade CYO basketball team had just won the district championship, on none other than Jim's last-second three-pointer.

"Thanks, but everyone else was good too," Jim replied, grinning. Pam rolled her eyes; she was used to Jim's team player attitude but wished that he'd take the credit sometimes. After all, he was voted the playoffs and championship MVP.

"Oh come on, Jim. Without you the team would've only won three games the entire season. The only other decent player is Roy but he's way too self-centered," Pam exclaimed.

"I guess you're right…well, at least about Roy," Jim replied, laughing.

"I know, will you do your imitation of him?" Pam asked, with pleading eyes.

"Pam, we're in the middle of the diner."

"No we're not. We're in the back like always, plus he's not even here." Pam gave Jim her best puppy dog eyes, and Jim smiled at her.

"Alright, I guess so," Jim said, caving in. "Oh my gosh, did you just catch Kate looking at me? She's the hottest freshman…she was totally checking out my biceps." Pam cracked up and soon Jim joined in. It was hard for the boy to imitate Roy with such a straight face.

"That was hilarious, Jim. I swear, one day you're going to become a world-famous comedian," Pam remarked.

"Only if you're allowed to travel the world with me," Jim said, with a smile.

"Is that an offer? If it is, then I accept," Pam replied, her emerald green eyes sparkling in the light.

"Then its set after we both graduate from Ohio State, its comedian tours right away," Jim said, with his laughter quickly following.

"Yup, what time is it?" Pam asked.

"It's only three. After this, do you want to come over and hang out? You'll probably be able to stay for dinner," Jim answered.

"Sure, Penny's going to the movies with Joe tonight and my parents are working late, so I'm free."

"Gross, she's still going out with Joe? I thought she rotated guys like every week," Jim said, wrinkling his nose as a smile played on the corners of his lips.

"I know, right? Yeah, they've been going out for a week and three days now, I'm keeping track. This has been her longest relationship so far. I can't believe mom's letting her go out with so many boys at only fifteen," Pam replied, furrowing her brow.

"Yeah, but it's kind of fun to compare her relationships."

"I know, speaking of that how are your brothers doing with their girlfriends?"

"Well, Tom's is actually kind of serious, I guess. He and Kendall are still together and it's been five months, I feel bad for her, nobody should have to put up with Tom for that long. Tom's head over heels for her and he's only sixteen. As for Pete, well, Lani broke up with him yesterday," Jim explained, laughing.

"Well, it serves him right. They're only thirteen, it's stupid to date that young. Plus, they only lasted a month of holding hands and hugs," Pam said.

"We all know the real reason they were going out…so that Pete could brag to his whole lacrosse team that he has a girlfriend," Jim replied, his ocean-colored eyes shining.

"Yeah, you should go put that back so that we can go," Pam said, motioning to Jim's empty glass.

"Okay, I'll be right back," Jim said, getting up from their booth and grabbing his glass.

Pam heard the door's familiar chime and glanced at the people coming in. It was Roy, Jake, and Timmy; the classic popular boy posse. Pam glanced back at the counter; Jim was engrossed in conversation with the diner's ancient owner. She hoped that the boys wouldn't notice her in the back booth. As soon as the thought entered her head, the boys spotted her and walked over. Pam could tell this wasn't going to go well.

"Hey, Pammy," Roy called. Pam winced, she hated that nickname.

"Uh, hi," she replied, uneasily. Pam glanced back at Jim praying that he would swoop in and save her. Roy followed her gaze and smirked.

"Your boyfriend Halpert played okay, today. I mean, I was obviously the star. I don't know what the refs and coaches were thinking when they put him as MVP," Roy said, smugly.

"Yeah, Jim isn't that good," Jake echoed.

"Plus, he's like weirdly tall. Kid's already like five-four," Timmy added.

Pam could feel the heat rising up her cheeks; she hated hearing them pick on Jim behind his back. To his face, they weren't that bad, they had occasional bickering but that usually it. "First off, Jim's not my boyfriend, he's my best friend. Secondly, Roy, Jim is the reason why you guys got to the championship in the first place. Also, he made the buzzer-beating three-pointer. Even using all the strength in your puny body; you wouldn't be able to make that shot in a million years," Pam exclaimed, now it was her turn to smirk.

Roy's cheeks turned bright red and his friends were speechless. He wasn't the kind of boy who got told off often. "Whatever, Pam. You are obviously so in love with him," Roy challenged. Jim walked up behind his teammates, at that exact moment.

"What were you guys just talking about?" Jim asked, his blue-green eyes connecting with Pam's light green ones.

"Nothing important, uh, good job today," Roy said, turning around and walking out of the place, his boys following close behind.

"You okay?" Jim asked, his sweet voice filled with concern.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Roy was just being a jerk and actually I told him off," Pam replied, confidently.

"No way, no one ever stands up to that kid, besides me at basketball," Jim said.

"Yup, I did Jim. I was just sick of him and I stood up for myself and you," Pam replied, smiling.

"Wow, Pam, that's awesome. What was he saying about me?"

"It wasn't important, anyways. Do you want to start walking back to your house now?" Pam asked.

"Sure, let's go. Hey, I think we still have that new Spiderman movie I rented from the library, you might be able to stay late and watch it," Jim suggested.

"That sounds cool, the Spiderman movies are the best," Pam said, as they got up and began walking towards the door.

"Yeah, did you see the look on Roy's face when he left?" Jim asked.

"Of course, he was so shocked. He looked like he was about to go to the bathroom in his pants," Pam said, laughing with Jim.

"I know. Oh, I think we still have tons of candy left from our last movie night," Jim exclaimed.

"Awesome, I love our movie nights," Pam said, looking at Jim.

"Me too," Jim replied, gazing at Pam.

_**So what did you guys think? I really enjoyed writing this chapter and I hope you guys enjoyed reading it. High school is almost here, please keep reading! Please review! I love hearing from everyone! **____** The next chapter will be out soon! **_


	6. Coded Notes

Chapter 6- Coded Notes

_**Author's Note- Hi everybody! I just want to say thank you to my sole reviewer last chapter Giygas. PK. Godot! Thanks very much…and for all the people who read but didn't review, well, thanks anyways. So please review this chapter, even if it's bad, I want to hear from you guys. In this chapter, Jim and Pam are thirteen and the next one is where the really story begins! High school, yay! Here's the chapter, enjoy! **___

Jim Halpert was lying down on Pam's bedroom floor, spinning his beat-up basketball on his finger. "Pam!" he exclaimed, tossing the basketball aside and sitting upright.

"What?" Pam asked, looking up from her sketch of Jim. Lately, Pam had been into drawing people and Jim was her only willing model.

"I just had a brilliant idea," Jim said, now sitting beside her.

"And what was this brilliant idea, Jim? Did you finally figure out how to beat the whole game of Mario, mini-games and all?" Pam questioned, raising an eyebrow jokingly.

"No," Jim replied, peering over her shoulder at the drawing. "Wow, you're really getting good. That looks even better than me in real life." Pam looked into his big, blue-green eyes and saw that he was telling the truth.

"Thanks, Jim. So, what was your great idea? Or did you forget it already?" Pam teased, adding some more color to Jim's portrait.

"I came up with a secret code!" Jim said, his hands moving animatedly.

"Seriously? You've got to show me, now, Halpert," Pam replied, her tone now serious and excited.

"Okay, do have some paper and a pen or pencil?" Jim asked, climbing on top of Pam's twin-sized bed.

Pam rolled her emerald green eyes at a confused Jim. "Duh, Jim. I'm practically an artist, of course I do," Pam said, forking over a pad of lined paper and a black pen.

"Oh right, I forgot," Jim replied, taking the supplies from his best friend. "Okay, so it's actually pretty simple. Say you're trying to write 'Hi Pam.'"

"Come on, write it Jim. You're practically killing me," Pam urged him.

The boy moved some caramel hair out of his eyes and began writing. Pam tried to glance over Jim's hunched-over shoulder to sneak a peek at the code, but she was unsuccessful. She noticed how Jim stopped every few seconds and his ocean-like eyes would flick over to her. "Okay, done," Jim announced, giving the notebook back to Pam.

Pam looked down at the page, it read; _Hippo Igloos. Paint Actors Monkeys. _"What? How do you read it?" she asked, clearly confused.

"You only take the first letter from each word. So…hi Pam. You can use any words and they don't have to make sense together, obviously," Jim explained, motioning to the paper.

"Oh, I get it now. Wait, what about the periods that you inserted?" Pam asked, pointing to the dots on the page.

"Oh yeah, you put a period after each word. It's so that your words don't run together," Jim added, smiling up at Pam.

"Awesome. This is really cool, Jim. We should totally write our notes to each other like this, from now on," Pam suggested, also grinning.

"Yeah, totally. That's why I made it up. For us," Jim admitted, looking back at Pam.

"It should be only for us, no one else," Pam agreed, quickly.

"Definitely," Jim said, scooping the pen and paper up from the floor. "Here you should practice, write something," Jim suggested, giving her the supplies.

"Okay," Pam said. "What should I write?" she asked, looking up at Jim, who was sprawled out on her bed while Pam was sitting on the carpet, comfortably.

"Anything, Beesly," Jim whispered, jokingly, before tossing his basketball in the air once more.

"Gee, thanks, that sure narrows it down," Pam replied, goofily thwacking him with a pillow.

"Okay, then. Write how you feel right now, here with me," Jim suggested, his tone a hundred percent serious.

Pam looked up at Jim, his white t-shirt rumpled and his light brown hair tousled and knew exactly how she felt. She scribbled down her message to Jim, before giving him the notebook back.

Jim began reading the page silently. It read; _Lemons Ick Keep Ear. Nut Oops Train Hair Icicles Not Good. Eek Look Suppose Elephant. Make Apple Toad Turtle Eerie Road Soup. _"Like nothing else matters," he read, glancing at Pam who was smiling up at him.

"It's true, it's like time stops when I'm with you," Pam admitted, bashfully. "It's stupid."

"No, it's not all. I feel the same way with you, and I have since we were five," Jim confessed, his eyes filled with adoration.

"So I'm not alone in this?" Pam suggested the tone back to playful.

"You'll never be alone as long as I'm around, Beesly," Jim replied, laughing.

_**So what did you guys think? I know this chapter was kind of short…I re-wrote it twice. The next chapter will be them in high school and Roy starts to come in the mix. So, stay tuned for updates! Please, please, review! **___


	7. Under A Spell

Chapter 7- Under A Spell

_**Author's Note- Hey everybody! Thanks so much to everybody who reviewed last chapter! You guys are really nice and it still shocks me that people are actually reading my writing. Crentist, I will start one of the stories soon, probably in two weeks. Is that okay? I was thinking of doing Denying Myself…what do you think? Alright, everyone, this is where the real story begins! Jim and Pam are now fifteen and sophomores in high school! Okay, here's the chapter, enjoy! **___

Pam Beesly was waiting on the gym's bleachers for Jim to come out of the locker room. The varsity basketball team's practice had just ended and for the past two weeks, Pam would watch Jim practice and then walk home with him, like usual. Pam looked up from her sketchbook; the first players were emerging from the locker room. She wasn't the only one who waited for a player, there were cheerleaders, supportive girlfriends, and of course, freshman girls ogling some of the star players. Roy Anderson, not one of the best players but not one of the worst, seemed to be walking towards Pam. He stopped in front of her expectantly, as if Pam knew what he wanted. When she didn't react, Roy hopped up on the bleachers, and sat next to her.

"Hi," Roy said, running a hand through his brown hair and letting it stay up in spikes. Roy smelled like Axe and was dressed in his letterman jacket, his usual attire that made girls swoon.

"Hi," Pam replied, shyly, wondering what he wanted. Roy was one of the most popular kids in their grade and usually wouldn't even take a second glance at someone like Pam. Jim and Pam weren't popular but they weren't losers either, just regular teenagers.

"So, Pam, why are you waiting at our practices for?" Roy asked, his soft brown eyes shining in the light.

"Uh, just waiting for Jim," Pam said, glancing at the door. Jim still hadn't arrived yet.

"Oh, okay. You're not going out with Halpert, are you?" Roy asked disgust in his voice at the mention of Jim's name. It was well-known that Roy was jealous of Jim, for he was one of the best players on the team, even as a sophomore.

"No, no. We're just friends," Pam answered, calmly. She was used to this question by now; after all they'd been getting asked that for ten years.

"Good, good. I was wondering," Roy started, glancing deep into Pam's emerald green eyes and making her insides melt, unknowingly. "Would you like to go to a party this weekend? It's at Sam's house; his parents are going to be out of town."

"With you?" Pam asked, just to make sure this wasn't some sort of sick prank.

"No, with Santa Claus," Roy responded, chuckling. "Of course with you, you know, like as my date."

"Yeah, of course, I'd love to," Pam replied quickly, surprising herself. Pam wondered what had gotten into her. Jim and her used to joke about the girls who fell under Roy's spell so quickly and now, she had just become one.

"Great. Do you want a ride home? My Mustang's in the parking lot," Roy offered, sincerely. Pam was truly amazed, she couldn't believe that just minutes ago, Pam would've still considered Roy to be a huge jerk. Pam was starting to think that maybe she and Jim had been wrong about Roy all along.

"Yeah, sure," Pam replied, quickly shoving her sketchbook in her backpack. She followed Roy out the gym's double doors just as Jim bounded out of the locker room.

Jim watched Pam walk out with Roy, wondering what had just happened. "Hey, Mark, where's Pam going?" Jim asked, still staring at the doors.

Jim's friend looked at him strangely. "I don't know, somewhere with Roy. I think he likes her, I heard him talking about her during practice," Mark replied, taking a swig of Gatorade.

"What? Roy liking Pam? He only dates cheerleaders, there has to be a mistake. Plus, he's not even Pam's type!" Jim rambled, bewildered.

"Whoa, there, buddy. I think you like Pam," Mark sing-songed.

"No, I don't. It's just weird of her to get up and leave with him, like, without even letting me know," Jim said, calmly.

"Oh, come on. Enough with all the best friend crap, you obviously love her," Mark replied, grinning.

"Shut up, Mark, you know I don't. It's different with her," Jim retorted, honestly. Jim was beginning to wonder if deep down somewhere he did harbor secret feelings for his best friend.

"Aww, that's adorable," Mark cooed, laughing. Jim slugged him in the arm as they made their way into the parking lot. The pair noticed Pam getting into Roy's Mustang; they glanced at each other timidly. Jim knew this wasn't good. It wasn't good at all.

Pam was working on her science homework late at night, when it came. Her usual good night call from Jim on their walkie-talkies that they'd been using since her seventh birthday. Pam always looked forward to the hearing the voice on the other end, it was soothing in a way, spilling all her troubles to Jim after a rough day or just talking about the most random things, it didn't matter as long as they were talking.

"Hi Beesly," Jim said into the walkie-talkie.

"Hey Jim, sorry I couldn't walk home with you. I, uh, got a ride with Roy," Pam replied, uneasily. She told Jim everything but somehow she didn't want to tell him about the party she would be attending. It just would feel wrong, even if she didn't have feelings for Jim.

"Oh yeah, I saw." There was a twinge of disappointment and sadness in his voice and Pam noticed.

"Uh, I'm, uh, going to be getting rides with him to and from school this week," Pam admitted, the words spilling from her mouth.

"Oh, okay. Are you two like dating? Because, I just don't think you're right for him. I mean, just last week, we would've laughed about you falling under the spell of Roy," Jim asked, nervously. He didn't want Pam to go out with Roy. It wouldn't be right. Jim knew he didn't own Pam but he just wanted to protect her.

"I'm not under his spell, Jim. I guess we might be like going out or something. He asked me to a party on Saturday. I think we misread him Jim, he was really nice to me," Pam replied, defending her new-found boyfriend. There was a muffled noise on the other end before Jim replied.

"Oh, uh, well that's cool I guess. I just, I just don't want you to get hurt, I honestly don't think Roy's the nicest guy." Jim waited for Pam's response and could almost feel the hesitation on her end.

"That's not really fair of you, Jim. You're judging him based on our middle school years. And I wasn't really asking for your opinion," Pam said, harsher than she meant for it to sound. "I'm sorry, Jim. That came out wrong, of course I value your opinion."

"It's fine, I shouldn't have said that in the first place. I'll still be able to hang out with you right?" Jim asked, just to make sure. If Roy Anderson thought he was going to steal Jim's best friend, well, he was wrong.

"Of course, you're not getting rid of me that easily," Pam replied, laughing. Just like that, they were back to their usual cheerful banter. After about an hour, they said good bye. Pam turned off the light and eagerly awaited the morning. It wasn't exactly every morning that the quarterback came to pick you up to go to school, after all.

_**So what did you think? I hoped the beginning of the 'real story' was all that it was cracked up to be, sorry if I disappointed anyone. I'll try to update within a few days, now that the story's actually taking off. I hope you guys enjoyed reading this chapter! Please review, I love to hear what you think! **___


	8. Welcome to the Popular World

Chapter 8- Welcome to the Popular World

_**Author's Note- Hey everybody! I want to say thanks to the two people who reviewed last chapter, you guys are really nice. So, I hope everyone liked the beginning of the high school years; this chapter is from where we left off. By the way, Dwight will be in this story. Here's the chapter, enjoy! **___

Honk! Honk! Roy beeped his Mustang's horn twice while waiting for his new-found girlfriend outside her house. "I've got to go now, Mom," Pam said, hastily grabbing her backpack and searching for her Converse sneakers.

"Is that noise coming from your boyfriend?" Mrs. Beesly asked. "This is the first time he's taking you to school and he's honking? He doesn't even want to come meet me? Boys should never honk." Pam's mom gave her a disapproving look.

"Mom, I already told you, Roy's really nice. Plus, it's not a big deal, all guys in my grade honk if they're picking up a girl," Pam replied, calmly.

"Well, I think it's rude and besides, Jim would never honk," Mrs. Beesly said.

"Jim can't even drive yet! I've got to go now, bye Mom," Pam responded, waving before stepping outside and jogging to Roy. Her mom waved from the front door, further embarrassing Pam. Pam opened the passenger seat door and slid into her seat.

"Hey babe," Roy greeted, as he pulled out of the driveway. _We haven't even gone out on one date yet and he's already calling me babe? He asked me out yesterday…is this what all guys do? _Pam thought to herself.

"Hi Roy," Pam said, cheerfully. "How are you?"

"Um, I'm fine; you don't have to be so formal. You're talking to your boyfriend, not the principal," Roy replied, laughing.

"Oh, right," Pam said, beaming when Roy said that he was her boyfriend.

"Do you mind if we stop off at BP?" Roy asked, looking at her with adoring brown eyes.

"For gas?" Pam questioned, she glanced at the dashboard; his gas tank was pretty much full.

"Nah, I've got to buy some more cigarettes," Roy responded, calmly. He acted like if he just said that he wanted to buy a Coke or something normal, meanwhile Pam's eyes bugged out.

"You smoke?" Pam asked, incredulously.

"Yeah, I'm going to guess that you don't," Roy said, pulling into BP's parking lot and cutting the engine.

"No, I don't. Um, that's fine, you can go get them," Pam replied, calmly. _So, he smokes…that's fine, right? Everyone has one bad habit, _she thought.

"Okay, thanks Pam," Roy responded, before hopping out of the car.

The first half of Jim's school day had been rough, so far. It felt weird not walking or riding bikes to school with Pam. He missed her and now that it was lunch he'd finally get to talk to her. They had one morning class with each other but they were taking a biology exam, so they were unable to talk. _Finally, I get to talk to her, _Jim thought, as he walked across the cafeteria to Pam. She was the only one who had arrived at their table so far. The two sat at a table with both boys and girls, some of Jim's friends and some of Pam's. But Jim and Pam always sat next to each other. "Hey Pam," Jim said, taking a seat beside her.

"Hey Jim, how was your morning without me?" Pam teased, pulling a package of Oreos from her lunchbox.

_Painful and lonely, _Jim thought, but he didn't want to rain on Pam's parade. She seemed really happy, so instead he responded normally. "Uneventful."

"Mine was okay. Roy picked me up in his car and then we stopped at BP for his, uh, cigarettes," Pam explained.

"He smokes?" Jim asked, suddenly taking great interest in the conversation.

"Uh, yeah, it's not a big deal, though," Pam stammered, instantly defending Roy.

"I know, I just wasn't aware of that," Jim said, taking a sip of his Mountain Dew.

"Okay, so any new prank ideas to use on Dwight?" Pam asked, smiling again. Dwight was an interesting boy in their grade, Jim and Pam didn't pick on him or bully him; they just messed with him.

Before Jim could respond, Roy walked up with a few cheerleaders. _Great…one day and he's already cheating on her, _Jim thought.

"Hi Pam, I thought you were going to sit with us," Roy said, smirking at Jim.

"Oh, uh," Pam started, sneaking a glance at Jim, who looked nervous. "Sure, I guess. Can Jim come too?"

"Sorry, the table's full, Halpert. Pam, this is Grace, Julie, and Maggie," Roy explained. Roy looked at Jim, "Maybe if you work out a little more, one of them could be yours," he said, laughing and walking back to his table with Pam. Pam looked back at Jim one last time with an apologetic look on her face.

Jim watched her as she sat down at the grade's popular table. There were all the jocks and cheerleaders along with a few class clowns. They acted like they were royalty but Jim knew they weren't. _What the heck? Why is she ditching me for those guys? To be popular? That's nothing like the Pam I know, she'd never leave me for popularity. In fact, we always make fun of those guys, _Jim thought, confused.

Roy Anderson pulled his Mustang into the Beeslys' driveway and got out to open the door for Pam. "Have a good day? I mean, like hanging out with my friends and I?" he asked.

"It was great, they're really nice," Pam said, and she meant it. Although, the girls mainly rambled on about make-up and boys, they had treated her like royalty because of Roy.

"Awesome because that's who we're going to be spending lots of time with," Roy replied. "I don't really like you hanging out with Jim a lot."

"Why?" Pam asked, almost fumbling her backpack.

"I think he's hurting your reputation. Like he's a loser, so if you're associated with him then people will think you are too. And I don't want people to think you're a loser because you're not, babe," Roy said.

"Well, okay, I guess," Pam replied. _I guess I can spend a little less time talking to him, _she thought.

"Great," Roy responded. Suddenly, he leaned over and pecked her on the cheek, sending shivers down Pam's spine. Before she could respond, Roy got in his car and drove away, leaving Pam speechless. _I guess I'm officially popular, _she thought to herself, strangely. Pam felt her cheek one last time before heading inside happily.

"Pam, you there?" Jim said into his walkie-talkie, it was around 9:30 at night and he was calling like usual. "Hello? Pam? I know you're there, stop ignoring me." Jim threw the device on the ground in frustration, she knew they were supposed to talk tonight about their pranking plans for Dwight. Jim sat on his bed and pulled out his laptop, waiting for her call. _She's online! I guess we can just IM tonight, instead, _he thought.

**Jim Halpert says:**

Hey Beesly, why weren't you picking up? I tried calling you like 3 times.

Jim waited for a response; a few minutes passed and still nothing.

**Jim Halpert says: **

Okay, Pam, this isn't funny anymore stop ignoring me. Seriously, if you don't answer I'm coming over.

Jim sighed; she obviously wasn't going to be contacting him. _What the heck? What is she doing? She never misses our calls or ignores me on IM, _Jim thought. Jim bent over and tied up his Nikes and jogged out of the house, his parents weren't home yet so no questions were asked.

Jim rang the doorbell and waited for someone to come and answer. "Oh, hi Jim," Mrs. Beesly greeted him.

"Hi Mrs. Beesly, is Pam home?" he asked, craning his neck to see if she was out back.

"Well…she is but she's been talking to that Roy for the past two hours on the phone, and they're talking online at the same time! Who does that? I honestly have a bad feeling about this boy, he's nothing like you for instance," Pam's mom rambled.

"Oh, uh, do you think she has a minute?" Jim asked, hopefully.

"I'll check," she said, turning around. "Pam! Jim's here and he wants to talk to you!" her mom yelled up the stairs.

"I'm busy!" Pam yelled back. "Tell him we can talk tomorrow!"

"Looks like she's busy," Mrs. Beesly said.

"Unbelievable," Jim muttered.

"Well, I'll see you soon, honey," Mrs. Beesly waved.

Jim waved before turning around and heading back home. _Yeah, talk tomorrow. Like she even has time for me anymore! She's been dating Roy for one day and Pam's blown me off numerous times! I just…I can't believe it. How quickly she's changing for him…what's the point? She would never ever have to change for me…because she's absolutely perfect the way she is, _Jim thought, sadly. The teen was afraid he was losing his best friend.

_**So what did you think? Did you like it or hate it? I just wanted to use this chapter to show how much Pam's changing already. I really want to know what you guys think…I'm afraid it's kind of bad. So please review everyone, it makes my day to hear from you guys! **___


	9. Pretty Eyes

Chapter 9- Pretty Eyes

_**Author's Note- Hi everybody! Thanks for all the awesome reviews last chapter! You guys are so nice! I hope that all of you are enjoying this story so far. Somebody said that Pam was changing too fast and I think you're right. So, I'm going to slow down that process. Here's the chapter, enjoy! **___

It was Friday and tomorrow Pam would be going to a party with Roy. Jim and Pam were sitting in Jim's tree house, planning new pranks for Dwight. "So, are you going to the party tomorrow with Roy?" Jim asked, putting down the pen.

"Yeah, why? Are you going too?" Pam replied, hoping that Jim would be coming too. Just in case something bad happened. Like if Roy did something crazy, at least she'd have Jim.

"Nah, parties aren't really my scene," Jim said, looking at Pam, curiously. _And they aren't yours, either. What are you doing, Pam? _Jim thought to himself.

"Oh, well I wish you were," Pam muttered, quietly. Jim smiled, Fridays and Saturdays were usually their days to hang out. "What do you think of Roy, Jim?"

_That he doesn't deserve you, _Jim thought. "Well, he's, uh, different. Roy's popular and he has lots of friends and has had lots of girlfriends. I just think that you should be careful, I don't think that he really knows what it means to be a boyfriend to somebody, especially not you." Jim looked into Pam's piercing green eyes, and for the first time realized how beautiful they were.

"You have really pretty eyes," Jim blurted out. _What the heck did I just say? Did I just tell Pam she has pretty eyes? Oh God, no. I'm her best friend; I'm not supposed to think that way about her. Whoa, did I just think 'that way' about her? _Jim thought, confused. "What I meant to say was, that I never noticed how colorful your eyes were," Jim backtracked.

"Thanks," Pam replied, blushing a little. _So far, I don't think Roy has called me 'pretty' once and Jim just did and I'm not even dating him, _she thought.

"Are you excited for the party?" Jim asked. The two of them had never really gone to a full-out high school party. Honestly, Jim was a little worried about Pam. He didn't want something bad to happen to her.

"Yeah, I guess. I mean no party will ever beat our pizza and movie nights," Pam said, laughing. Jim nodded, his deep blue eyes shimmering in the light.

"Can you hang out tomorrow, like before the party? Only if you want to," Jim offered, doodling on the notepad.

"Sure, Jim, we can go to the arcade," Pam suggested, watching Jim. He ripped out the piece of paper and began folding it into a paper airplane.

"Sounds great." Jim's paper airplane whizzed past her ear, running into the wall. Pam picked up the airplane and tossed it back to him.

"Come here," Pam said, as Jim knee-crawled over to Pam. "Check out this caricature I made of Dwight in science today." Jim began laughing, soon he was rolling on the floor snorting with laughter. In the picture Dwight had an even bigger nose and glasses, along with Dwight's regular features, it looked pretty hilarious.

"That's really good, Beesly," Jim said, hiccupping. "I think it deserves a spot on the wall of fame," he continued, taking the picture. A few years ago, Jim had created one of the tree house walls into a personal showcase of Pam's artwork. There were tons of pictures; the earlier ones were ones he kept from back when they were five. Jim taped the picture to the wall, smiling back at Pam.

"I love the wall of fame," Pam exclaimed, happily. It had been Pam's twelfth birthday present from Jim.

"Me too," Jim replied.

Jim's mom appeared at the bottom of the ladder, "Jim! You need to clean up your room!" she yelled.

Pam laughed; Jim wasn't one of the most organized people she knew. "Okay, I'm coming!" Jim called back, heading down the ladder with Pam.

"Hey honey," Mrs. Halpert greeted Pam. "Do you want to go home? Jim will probably take a while."

"No, it's okay. I'll help him out," Pam replied, glancing at a smiling Jim.

"You're lucky you have such a good friend, Jim. It's a wonder that she hasn't left you yet," she said, laughing.

Jim rolled his eyes. "What's for dinner?"

"Lasagna, is that good Pam?" Mrs. Halpert asked.

"It's great," Pam replied.

"What about me?" Jim joked.

"You sir, don't get a say," his mom said, laughing. The trio headed inside, eager for dinner. Tomorrow was going to be a long day for Jim and Pam.

_**So what did you think? I know this chapter was super short, sorry. The next chapter is going to be long though, if that helps. Also, it's going to be the party. I hope you guys liked this chapter! Please review! Hearing from all of you guys is awesome and I really appreciate it. **_


	10. The Party

Chapter 10- The Party

_**Author's Note- Hey everybody! I only got one review last chapter which is kind of disappointing because I know you guys are out there! So please review this chapter, I want to hear from all of you! This chapter is the party; it's sort of Pam's first official date with Roy. Here's the chapter, enjoy! ;)**_

Pam was rummaging through her drawers trying to find something suitable to wear to the party. She didn't really know what to wear, so Pam decided to just try to wear something that resembled what the popular girls wore. Pam had a great day so far; she and Jim had gone to Scranton Sweets for lunch and then headed to the arcade for the rest of the day. Pam had felt a little bad because Roy texted her this morning asking if she could hang out with him. She just told him that she had chores to do, and hoped that he believed her. _Hmm, this might look okay. I think Maggie wore something a little like this a few days ago, _Pam thought, and setting out an outfit on her bed. She had picked out a blue and white striped long sleeve shirt and her only pair of skinny jeans. Pam looked at the skinny jeans tag, Abercrombie. _I should be okay then, _Pam thought. Pam quickly changed into her clothes and pulled on tan ballet flats, hoping to look good for Roy.

Beep! Beep! Pam heard Roy's Mustang and headed towards the door. "Have fun and be careful," Mrs. Beesly warned.

"Mom, I'm going to be fine." Pam reached for the doorknob, looking back at her mom.

"Is Jim going too? I don't really trust this Roy kid," her mom asked, not giving in.

"I don't know if he's going," Pam lied. "But I have to go, so, bye." Pam walked down the front porch steps and saw Roy smiling through the window. _Should I run to his car? Or would that look needy? I guess I'll just walk, _Pam thought. She settled on walking down the pathway and into his car.

"Hey babe," Roy greeted, smiling at her. No 'you look nice' or anything, just 'hey babe.' Pam resisted the urge to sigh. But who was she to think like that? Here was Roy, the most popular guy in their grade and he chose her out of all the pretty cheerleaders and any other pretty girls; he chose Pam. She should be grateful, but a small part of her was wondering; was this all there was to love?

"Hi Roy," Pam replied, buckling her seatbelt.

"So, you've gone to a party before?" Roy asked, expecting that she had.

"Uh, no actually." Pam tried to gauge his reaction and see if it was good or bad.

"That's okay. It means that your first memory of a party will include me," Roy said, smiling at her.

"Awesome," Pam said, not coming up with any other words. As Roy hummed along to the radio, Pam studied him. He had slightly wavy brown hair that was usually spiked up, but not by product. Roy also had soft brown eyes that made him look innocent, along with dimples you could dive into; girls swooned at his every move.

"Here it is," Roy said, stopping at the curb. Pam looked around in shock, there were cars lined up and down the street just for a high school party. "Sam has tons of free beer," Roy explained, getting out of the car. Pam got out of the car and Roy instantly took her small hand into his sweaty, big one. Pam smiled; it felt good to hold hands with him…even if his was a little clammy.

Roy led her inside the door, and Pam instantly felt the urge to have a personal space shield. The place was packed, kids were everywhere. Everywhere Pam looked, kids were doing things that she wasn't used to seeing or doing. There were tons of couples making out; teens were downing drink after drink, music was blaring out of the speakers, and it seemed like every five seconds somebody would be trying to cuss out someone else. Roy weaved her through the crowds of people and surprisingly, people parted like the Red Sea for the two of them. Pam was shocked; everyone seemed to know who she was. Numerous people were waving or saying hi to her, she just smiled and waved back. "Come on, Pam. Let's go say hi to our friends."

_Wow! Our friends…he considers me part of the 'popular' group now. That we're all in one big group of friends. Ugh, there's only one thing missing, though…Jim. I wish he could hang out with us, too. But Roy doesn't like him so…I don't know, _Pam thought, following Roy. "What's up, guys?" Roy greeted his friends. He slowly fist bumped and high fived each one of them and their dates.

"Hey dude, brought your girl with you? Nice," Jake said. Pam blushed; Jake was also one of the popular guys in their grade. There was also Tyler and Xavier in their crew. Each one of the guys had a cheerleading girlfriend with them.

"Hi," Pam replied, shyly. She was at a loss for words, all the newfound attention and friends was amazing.

"Hey Pam," Julie, Maggie, and Grace all squealed at the same time. "Come with us, we'll show you around." Pam glanced at Roy to see what he would think but he was already engorged in a conversation with Tyler. Pam shrugged and followed the girls. They ended up in the laundry room in the basement, the only place where it was quiet. A few boys and girls were down there but they were just talking quietly. "So, how awesome is Roy?" Grace asked, smiling hugely.

"Pretty awesome," Pam laughed.

"I know, you are just so lucky. He is gorgeous," Julie sing-songed.

"Yeah and he totally loves you, like totally," Maggie added, applying a fresh layer of lip gloss. Pam beamed, for popular girls they were actually pretty nice, so far.

"Thanks. So, who are you guys going out with?" Pam asked. She knew that they all had popular boyfriends but wasn't sure who was paired with who.

"I'm with Xavier, Grace is with Tyler, Maggie is with Jake," Julie explained. Jake stumbled down the stairs, looking a little tipsy. He was carrying a six-pack of beer.

"Hello ladies," Jake swooned, smiling goofily. He leaned over and kissed Maggie sloppily, handing her the beer.

"Hey honey," Maggie giggled, pushing some of Jake's curly blond hair out of his piercing blue eyes.

"This is from us guys to the beautiful girls," Jake exclaimed, handing the beer to Pam. "Gotta go." Jake bounded up the stairs almost tripping twice. Pam gave the six-pack to Maggie.

"I don't drink," Pam mumbled quietly.

"You don't?" Julie questioned, incredulously.

"Um, no," Pam replied, her voice just above a whisper.

"It's cool; I didn't start drinking until I was with Tyler. He brought me to the dark side," Grace joked, popping open a beer. Pam smiled, unsure of what to say. Was Roy bringing her too to the dark side?

An hour had passed since the girls entered the basement and they were now on their way back upstairs. Julie and Maggie were all out drunk but Grace wasn't she'd only had one. The four made their way through the crowd and back to their boys. Pam's eyes bugged out; all of their boyfriends were completely trashed, especially Roy. "Hey Pammy," Roy slurred, almost falling over.

"Are you okay?" Pam asked, studying him carefully.

"Of course I'm okay," Roy replied. Roy's eyes darted down to Pam's lips and before Pam could register what was happening Roy's lips crashed onto hers. After a few seconds, Pam pulled away. Roy smiled, shrugged and returned to his friends.

_My first ever kiss and Roy was…drunk and delusional. It shouldn't even count, does it? How am I supposed to get home now? _Pam thought, sadly. Their kiss wasn't glamorous or life-altering like in movies and books, it was just horrible.

"Do you want a ride home? I can give you one if you wait for a few more hours," Grace offered, kindly.

Pam looked down at her watch; it was only nine o' clock. "No, it's okay, but can I borrow your phone?"

Grace nodded, pulling her cell out of her purse. Pam walked down to the basement and dialed Jim's number. He picked up on the first ring. "Hello?" Jim said.

"Hey Jim, it's me, Pam."

"Oh! Hi, how's the party going? Are you okay?" Jim asked, instantly worrying.

"Um, I'm fine. Could you walk me home?" Pam asked, hopefully.

"Yeah, sure, no problem. I'll be there in a few minutes," Jim replied, hanging up and pulling his shoes on. _Did anything bad happen to her? Did Roy dump her? God, knowing him, he's probably trashed by now, _Jim thought. Jim jogged to Sam's house in record timing and Pam was there waiting for him on the curb. Pam stood up and walked to him, before she could say anything; Jim threw his arms around her and engulfed her in a bear hug. "What happened?" he whispered into her hair.

"Nothing, really, Roy's drunk. So, I just didn't want to go home alone," Pam said, urging herself not to break down over something stupid.

"I'm glad you're okay," Jim said, stepping away from her.

"Well, I am now."

"Want to stop by Scranton Sweets? It's on me," Jim offered, walking beside Pam.

"They're still open?" Pam asked, as Jim nodded. "Okay, then."

_**So what did you think? Did you guys like it? Did you think the characters were like themselves? I'd love to know your thoughts. Please review and I hope you liked it! ;)**_


	11. Back Off!

Chapter 11- Back Off!

_**Author's Note- Hi everybody! Thanks to everybody who reviewed last chapter…you guys are awesome! I don't know how long this story is going to end up being, probably around sixteen to twenty chapters. Well, anyways here's the chapter, enjoy! ;)**_

"I'm going to say it again, I'm really sorry," Roy said, apologizing to Pam for the millionth time. It was Monday, two days after the party and Roy had felt really bad about what happened.

"Roy, it's fine," Pam assured him. They were walking to English class, hand in hand; it was their last class of the day. They reached the door and headed inside the classroom, Jim waved at Pam from his seat. Pam smiled and felt the urge to walk up to him and strike up a conversation but then remembered Roy.

"What was that all about?" Jake asked, raising an eyebrow as Roy and Pam approached their group.

"What?" Roy asked, as the whole group turned to look at Pam.

"You know, Halpert just like completely flirted with your girl," Tyler explained, pointing at Jim. Jim was completely oblivious to what was going on; he was in a conversation with Mark. _Roy's girl? Is that really all I am now? I guess I should be proud but something feels off, _Pam thought.

"No, he was just being friendly. I mean, we are friends," Pam said, defending Jim. Roy looked at her skeptically, while the rest of their friends slowly faded away into the rest of the class. Once their friends were out of earshot, Roy decided to talk to Pam about it.

"Pam, you said you were done hanging out with him," Roy started. _I didn't say that, you did, _Pam thought, grimacing. "Look, I don't how to say this without being rude but you gotta trust me. You're a different person now. You're not who you were when you were friends with him. Jim's a loser and if you hang out with him, you're a loser. Plus, people are going to think you're cheating on me…and that would be really bad. We already had this talk before, remember? You're with me now; on top of the school…you don't want to go back to the bottom." Roy smiled and kissed the top of Pam's head. Jim cringed when he saw Roy with Pam.

_Ugh, she deserves so much better. God, what is wrong with me? Do I actually like Pam? Oh boy…I think I do. I mean she is really pretty and has nice eyes and…._Jim thought, gazing at Pam from across the room. The bell rang, ending Pam and Roy's conversation and Jim's daydreaming. Pam took her seat behind Jim and Roy sat next to Pam.

Pam sat down and stared at the back of Jim's head. _What the heck? Roy can't control who I hang out with! Jim's been my best friend for ten years…where was Roy back then? Oh yeah, making fun of us. What changed his mind about me? Well, Roy does have a point. I was nothing before I met him and now everyone knows me. Everyone loves me now, no one loved me before, _Pam thought, deciding that Roy was right.

Mr. Flenderson, their extremely ancient and boring English teacher was droning on about grammar usage. Jim turned around and smiled at Pam, mouthing 'boring.' Pam either smiled back or winced. Jim couldn't tell but he knew that she looked a little down. Jim flipped to a new page in his notebook and decided to write Pam a note. He scribbled down a few words and discretely stretched his arms and dropped the note on her desk.

Pam smiled but then quickly remembered that she wasn't supposed to be friends with Jim anymore…at least not in front of Roy. Pam unfolded the piece of paper and read the note. It said; _Yum Octopus Underwater. Omen Kryptonite Apple Yodel? _It translated to 'You okay?' Pam debated whether or not to write back. She looked at Roy, who was staring intensely at her. Roy smiled and motioned to the note. Pam recognized that mischievoussmile though; he did the same thing when they were younger. "It's nothing," Pam whispered.

"Can I see?" Roy asked, innocently. Pam smiled; Roy was really cute and charming. She reluctantly handed the note over. Pam watched Roy's expression as he read the note. _It doesn't matter…he's not going to get what Jim's saying, _Pam thought. Roy looked pretty confused, but he picked up his pen and decided to send his own message to Jim. Roy chucked the balled-up paper at Jim and it hit him in the back of the head. Jim turned around to face Pam, and rolled his eyes; thinking that she did it. Jim bent over and scooped up the note. He unfolded it and peered down at the paper. _What the heck? Do you even know English? Notes are so preschool, Halpert. So back off my girl! _It read. Jim instantly knew that it was Roy; Pam didn't have sloppy handwriting and would definitely recognize their code. Jim could feel his cheeks burning, how did Roy get his note? _What the heck? Why did Roy write back? _Jim thought. Jim turned around to face Roy and Pam, Roy was looking smug and Pam just looked confused.

"What the heck, Roy? How'd you get this?" Jim demanded, whisper-yelling. Now Pam looked at Roy.

"Pam gave it to me. And seriously, Jim this isn't kindergarten. You don't write love letters to your crush. Plus, gibberish…what are you, Dwight?" Roy sneered, smiling. Pam giggled accidently and Jim turned around so fast that he slammed his desk into the next person's. Mr. Flenderson looked up from the chalk board and glared at Jim.

"Jim, what are you doing?" he asked, timidly. Jim rolled his eyes; this was one of the most pathetic teachers in the school.

"Nothing," Jim said, coldly. Mr. Flenderson walked up to him and spotted the wadded up piece of paper on his desk. The teacher picked it up, inspecting it. "That's not yours," Jim snapped, surprising the class. The last time that Jim was a well-known troublemaker was in eighth grade, once he got to high school, he stopped.

Mr. Flenderson unfolded the note and began reading it out loud. "Yum octopus underwater. Omen kryptonite apple yodel?" He looked down quizzically at Jim; the room was filled with thunderous laughter. Jim buried his face and his hands and was running his hands through his hair relentlessly. "What the heck? Do you even know English? Notes are so preschool, Halpert. So back off my girl!" he finished. By now, the whole class was cracking up uncontrollably. Even Mr. Flenderson, the timid teacher, was smiling. Everyone knew that Roy was talking about Pam, which further humiliated Jim. Jim could feel his cheeks and the tips of his ears burning. After a few seconds, Jim stood up, slung on his backpack and began walking towards the door. "Mr. Halpert! Come back," Mr. Flenderson demanded. Jim looked over his shoulder and connected with Pam's green eyes. As soon as his blue eyes landed on hers, he turned away and slammed the door behind him.

_**So what did you think? Did you like it? Was everyone in character? Also, Mr. Flenderson was supposed to be like a grown-up Toby. I'm going to use more of The Office characters soon, because people have recommended that I do. So, do you think it's over between Jim and Pam? Let me know what you think in a review, please! ;)**_


	12. Instant Apology

Chapter 12- Instant Apology

_**Author's Note- Hi everybody! Thanks for all the awesome reviews last chapter, you guys are so nice! This chapter is from where we left off; it's still Monday and Jim just basically got dissed by Pam. I'm thinking of doing a Jim's POV one-shot from season 2; let me know if you guys would be interested in reading that. Here's the chapter, enjoy! ;)**_

Jim paced his room, The Killers blaring through his headphones. After Jim stormed out of class, the assistant principal, Mrs. Gaffrey, had been called and stopped him just before he made it out the door. Then, she and Mr. Flenderson had given him a long talk in the office. After hearing them preach for half an hour, they gave him his punishment. Every day after-school detention for a week, the hardest part was Jim having to come home and tell his parents. It had been a while since he last got in trouble, so his parents went easy on him. They just gave him his second speech of the day and let it be at that. Luckily, his parents didn't even know what the note was about. They just knew that he disrespected Mr. Flenderson in front of the whole class. It was around six o' clock and Jim still hadn't even heard from Pam yet. _She probably doesn't even care. Pam and Roy were probably laughing about it later with their whole little crew. I just can't believe she didn't even try to say anything. We always have each other's back, it's like an unspoken rule between us, _Jim thought. Mrs. Halpert knocked on Jim's door. "Jim, Pam's on the phone."

_I don't even want to talk to her, _Jim thought, angrily. "I'm in the bathroom!" Jim yelled. He did have a bathroom attached to his room so it was a good lie.

"Okay, I'll tell her you'll call her back," Mrs. Halpert suggested, walking back down the hall.

_I'm not going to though. It's like she threw everything away! Everything! Our whole ten years together out the window! Roy doesn't even care about her like I do! Roy doesn't even know anything about her, I know everything about her. Why is she even with him? Can't she see that I'm the one who understands her? I've been here all along, it took me a while to notice it but…this is real. What we have, is a once in a lifetime kind of thing, _Jim thought, turning on his laptop. As he logged onto his Hotmail, he saw that Pam was online. He knew that she was probably going to try to IM him. His laptop chirped and the IM window popped up in the corner of his screen.

**Pam Beesly says: **Jim! Please talk to me!

Jim read her message and debated whether or not to reply back.

**Pam Beesly says: **I can see you're online…please don't ignore me!

Jim offered the computer screen a sad half-smile.

**Jim Halpert says: **What?

**Pam Beesly says: **I'm so sorry. Really. Let me explain.

**Jim Halpert says: **I don't think there's any explaining to be done.

**Pam Beesly says: **You know there is. Don't be like this.

**Jim Halpert says: **Don't be like what? You're the one who needs to change! Ever since you started going out with Roy, you've been acting totally different!

**Pam Beesly says: **Don't bring him into this, Jim. He didn't do anything.

**Jim Halpert says: **…

**Pam Beesly says: **Okay, well, he was kind of a jerk to you today. I talked to him about it and he's really sorry that he did that. He feels really bad that you got in trouble.

**Jim Halpert says: **Yeah, I'm sure that he said that in between fits of laughter.

**Pam Beesly says: **Jim! He was sincerely sorry. Anyways, I'm really sorry. I should've said something. It's all my fault.

**Jim Halpert says: **Then why didn't you say something? Afraid what the popular crowd would think about you standing up for a loser?

Pam looked at her computer screen intensely, picturing Jim's frustrated face on the other end. _Actually, yeah, I was afraid of what they would think, _Pam thought.

**Pam Beesly says: **I don't know why I didn't speak up. Roy thinks you like me…as more than friends.

**Jim Halpert says: **I don't.

**Pam Beesly says: **I know, that would be weird. I'm trying to explain that to him, sorry. But seriously Jim, are you going to throw away our friendship over this? We've never ever fought before and this whole thing is so stupid.

**Jim Halpert says: **I don't want our friendship to be over. I just don't understand why you're changing for him. Roy should like Pam, not the new Pam.

**Pam Beesly says: **You're right; I'll try to be nicer. So…friends again?

**Jim Halpert says: **Wasn't aware that we ever stopped being friends.

**Pam Beesly says: **Glad to have you back, Halpert.

**Jim Halpert says: **My mom's calling me for dinner, I've got to go.

**Pam Beesly says: **Bye, I'll talk to you later tonight.

**Jim Halpert says: **Bye.

_**Jim Halpert is offline.**_

__Pam smiled at the computer screen, happy that they had mended their friendship so quickly. A new IM window popped up on her screen from Roy.

**Roy Anderson says: **ya talk to Halpert yet?

**Pam Beesly says: **Speak English, Roy.

**Roy Anderson says: **Sorry babe. Did you make up with Halpert?

**Pam Beesly says: **Yeah, just did. You really have to be nicer to him, Roy. He's my friend and I care about him.

**Roy Anderson says: **Fine. But it's not my fault that he runs off crying every time I just make a joke.

**Pam Beesly says: **Don't exaggerate, Roy.

**Roy Anderson says: **Sorry Pammy! Can you hang out now?

**Pam Beesly says: **It's 6:45 on a school night, of course I can't.

**Roy Anderson says: **Why not?

**Pam Beesly says: **School tomorrow, duh!

**Roy Anderson says: **Oh yeah, want to skip tomorrow? We can hit the mall.

**Pam Beesly says: **I don't think that would be a good idea. I don't want to get in trouble.

**Roy Anderson says: **Ugh, you're no fun. I've got to go, Xavier's calling me.

_**Roy Anderson's offline.**_

___At least Jim and I made up, _Pam thought.

_**So what did you think? Happy that they made up? I don't think that Jim and Pam could be mad at each other for long. Please review, I love hearing what you think. I'll update soon, R&R!**_


	13. Skipping

Chapter 13- Skipping

_**Author's Note- Hi everybody! Sorry that I haven't updated in so long, I feel terrible :(. I kind of forgot because I was really busy with my Glee stories. I'm on break right now, so I'll really try to update every few days. Here's the chapter, enjoy! ;)**_

"Bye Mom," Pam waved, as she walked down her driveway to Roy's car. Pam got into the Mustang and smiled at her boyfriend.

"Hey beautiful," Roy greeted, as he backed out of the driveway.

Pam blushed. "I was thinking about what you said last night and…maybe we could skip, well, just for today. I have a math test that I'm not really looking forward to."

"Really? This is great! I'll call Jake, Tyler, and Xavier and tell them to bring their girls to the mall," Roy said, pulling out his phone. Usually Pam would say something about driving while talking on the phone but she was too excited to say anything. After all, Pam was popular now…and skipping school was just one of the things that popular kids got away with.

"Okay, they're going to meet us there," Roy explained, smiling.

"Do you guys skip a lot?" Pam asked.

"Uh, sometimes. Is that a problem?" Roy replied, concerned.

"No! No, I mean I am coming with you," Pam joked. All thoughts of Jim were erased from her mind; this may have been the first time she had gone a few hours without thinking about him.

"Oh, okay, cool. How are you getting along with the girls?" Roy questioned.

"Great, they're so nice," Pam gushed. It was true, since Pam had started dating Roy; her and the girls had become close friends. They now walked the halls together, talked on the phone, texted and IMed constantly.

Jim walked into his first hour math class to find that Pam wasn't there. He thought this was weird because he was just talking to her last night…she didn't say anything about being sick. Jim tapped Mark who was sitting next to him. "Mark, do you know if Pam's here?"

Mark glanced around the room. "Uh, she's not."

Jim rolled his eyes, he knew that. "I meant, is she sick?"

"How would I know? You're her best friend," Mark replied.

"Are Roy and his posse here today?" Jim sighed.

"Uh, no, none of them are here and their girlfriends are gone too." Mark began copying Jim's homework from last night.

Jim ran a hand through his unruly hair as the realization set in. All of them must've skipped together, there was no way they were all sick. "Hey! I think I know what happened…they probably all skipped!" Mark declared.

"I realized that," Jim grumbled.

"Will the store clerks notice that we're supposed to be in school?" Pam asked, cautiously.

"Not if they want tickets to our basketball games," Tyler laughed.

"Relax, you've got nothing to worry about, Pammy," Roy assured her. He took her hand as they walked into Abercrombie.

"Oh, this would look soooo hot on you, Pam!" Julie squealed, holding up a pair of hot pink skinny jeans. They looked like they would be skin-tight. Pam had never really worn anything like that to school before.

"Yeah, those look good," Pam agreed, surprising herself.

"I'm gonna go with the guys to look for some shirts," Roy said, giving her a quick kiss before walking to the other side of the store.

"Um, how much do those cost?" Pam asked, admiring the jeans.

Julie checked the tag. "Fifty."

"Dollars?" Pam repeated. Most of her jeans cost twenty at the most.

"Duh, what else," Maggie laughed. She leaned over, "Unless you would rather it be free."

"What?" Pam asked, not catching on.

"You can just go to the dressing room and stuff it in your bag…I do it all the time. Haven't paid for clothes in nearly three years," Maggie explained, smirking.

Pam's green eyes grew wide. She knew that was against the law. "I-I…"

"You don't have to…actually just don't," Grace assured her, ignoring Maggie. Pam nodded, smiling. Grace was the one she trusted the most, she was the one who helped her at the party. "Maggie's the only one who does that," she whispered once the other two were ahead.

"Oh, okay," Pam replied, not knowing what else to say. "So, what do you really think of these pants?"

"The teal ones would look better on you," Grace said, holding up a pair equally as tight.

Pam placed down the pink ones and grabbed the blue ones instead. The girls quickly caught up to Julie and Maggie. "Ooh, I just love this shirt," Julie squealed, clutching a loose, off the shoulder tee that would definitely show a lot of skin.

"Yeah, it's cute," Pam added, hopefully. Julie turned to face her, smiling.

"You should get one," Julie suggested. "I'll pay."

"Seriously?" Pam asked, incredulous.

"Yeah, I have a $200 gift card. I'll get you three shirts of my choice if you get those pants."

"In teal?" Pam asked, hopefully.

Julie laughed. "Sure."

After Julie and the girls picked out a few open tops for Pam, they went to the cash register and met the boys. Pam had already paid for the pants and Julie was paying for their stuff right now. "Where's Maggie?" Jake asked.

"She's…you know…in the dressing room," Julie offered, glancing at the dressing room stalls.

"Oh, yeah, well she better hurry up," Jake replied, shuffling his feet.

"You know, she can catch up with us. I don't want to get involved in her issues," Grace declared, taking Tyler by the hand and dragging him out the door.

"Yeah, come on, babe. I don't feel like getting arrested," Roy agreed, as he and Pam walked out of the store. Julie and Xavier quickly followed, leaving Jake in the store and Maggie in the dressing room.

Jim sat down at his lunch table next to Mark. A few of Pam's old friends were there but instead of sitting with the boys like they usually did, they were off in the corner. "So, did you and Pam stop fighting yet?" Mark asked, peeling a banana.

"Yeah, she apologized over IM."

"Cool. What do you think of her dating Roy?" Mark raised an eyebrow at his friend.

"It's not any of my business," Jim replied. Truthfully, he hated that she was dating Roy.

"Defensive much?" Mark laughed.

"Whatever, I really don't care." Jim glanced over to Pam's old friends and wondered what they could be talking about. Jim strained his ears and caught snippets of the conversation.

"I miss Pam," one girl said.

"I can't believe she left us for those blonde bimbos and Roy," another complained.

"I actually don't blame her," the last voice said. "Roy's hot. He's quarterback of the football team and plays basketball, hello? Total jock and you know what jocks come with…abs. Face it, Roy is everything Jim isn't. He has abs, popularity, tons of girls vying for his attention, and a real sense of humor."

"I thought Jim was kind of funny with his pranks," the second voice argued.

"His pranks are funny for a kindergartner. Jim needs to grow up," the first voice laughed.

Jim's cheeks burned and he scooped up his lunch bag and chucked into the garbage can with so much force that the can nearly toppled over. Jim stormed out of the lunchroom and ignored Mark's cries asking where he was going.

"Hey, it's already three," Julie announced.

"We should head back before basketball starts, man," Tyler agreed.

"Wait…what about Maggie and Jake? We still haven't heard from them," Pam interjected. She didn't want to be a party pooper but they hadn't seen the two since they left them in Abercrombie.

"I'll text Jake," Roy suggested, pulling out his phone.

"What if Maggie got caught stealing?" Pam asked, worrying.

"She wouldn't…she's practically a pro, Mags does it all the time," Xavier replied, though he too was worried.

"Yeah, what if she got arrested?" Grace wondered.

"Jake replied!" Roy said, almost yelling. "He says; _Emergency! A store alarm went off when Mags and I were going. The police were called and Mags is down at the station right now. I didn't get in trouble, they just took me home and told mom that I was ditching. I don't think Mags will get arrested but I'm worried, man._"

"Oh my God!" Julie squealed.

"What will happen? Will she get arrested? I- on my God!" Pam stammered.

Roy shrugged. "If they took her to the station…they're probably just holding her there for a few hours."

"Yeah…" Tyler quietly agreed.

"It's not a big deal. Last year when the guys and I got hammered, they took us down to the station. Our parents just had to pick us up," Roy shared, calmly.

Grace shot Tyler a look. "I wasn't there," he admitted.

"Yeah, it was just me, Roy, and Jake," Xavier explained.

"Oh cool," Pam added, surprising herself.

"Let's go home," Grace suggested, already dragging Tyler to the mall's exit.

"Can we stay a bit longer?" Pam asked, smiling at Roy.

"No," Grace said, firmly. "I don't want to get in any more trouble."

"Yeah, we should split," Roy agreed.

The teens said their goodbyes and headed back to their carpools. "This was so fun," Pam gushed.

"Yeah, sorry about Maggie getting in trouble, that usually never happens," Roy apologized.

"It's cool. Skipping was fun…hanging out with you is fun," Pam smiled.

"I'm glad you think that." Roy pulled into Pam's driveway and unbuckled his seatbelt. Roy leaned over and started kissing Pam. Pam melted under his kiss and deepened it. Mrs. Beesly peered out the window and nearly screamed at the sight.

Pam's mom opened the front door. "Pam! Get in the house right now!"

Roy nearly jumped at the sound of this and his elbow crashed onto the car's horn, causing it to beep for a few long seconds. "Sorry," he said, an innocent smile crossing his lips.

"It's okay," Pam laughed. "My mom's just a little overprotective."

"I'd be overprotective too if I had a daughter that looked like you," Roy smirked.

Pam blushed. "I would totally kiss you but…" she pointed to the door.

"Yeah, I'll text you as soon as I get home," Roy promised.

"Okay, bye," Pam waved, getting out of the car.

As Roy backed out of their driveway, only one thought enter his mind…what on earth was happening to Pam Beesly? Not that he minded, though.

_**So what did you think? Good or bad? Boring or interesting? Like I said, I'm on break so I'll really try to update more often. The next chapter will have some Jim/Pam drama though, just warning you. Please leave a review, I love hearing what you guys think. Seriously, though, not a lot of people are reviewing and that's what fuels my writing. Would any of you be interested on like a two-shot alternative ending to 'Casino Night'? R&R! ;) **_


	14. Grow Up

Chapter 14- Grow Up

_**Author's Note- Hi everybody! Thanks for all the reviews last chapter, I love hearing from my readers. I got six reviews! That's the most I ever got for this story, so please keep reviewing. Well, this chapter takes place the next day (so the day after they skipped). Here's the chapter, enjoy! ;)**_

Pam was practically strutting through the hallway with Julie, Maggie, and Grace by her side. She had worn her new teal skinny jeans to school with one of the open tops that Julie had bought for her. Maggie had ended up being fine; her parents had to come get her from the police station and she was grounded for a month. The rest of the girls had felt really bad; promising that they would make the most of the time they had in school together and they would try to sneak her out for major parties and dates with Jake. By now, it had spread around the school about Maggie's run-in with the police. Yet, she and Jake were still fine and she was still on top at the school. School had just ended and Pam was hoisting her backpack on her shoulder and making her way out the door. Jim quickly stuffed the last of his homework in his backpack and dashed down the hallway. "Hey Pam! Pam!" Jim shouted, chasing after her.

Pam continued walking with her newfound friends until Grace tapped her shoulder. "I think that kid's calling your name," she said, glancing back at Jim.

Pam looked over her shoulder and spotted Jim, who was practically chasing them. "Isn't that the kid that ran out of our English class almost crying because of Roy?" Julie asked.

"He wasn't crying," Pam mumbled, feeling the need to stick up for Jim. They hadn't talked since they made up two days ago. It was the longest they had gone without talking, ever.

"Well, are you going to say something to him?" Maggie asked, shooting Jim a glare before glancing back at Pam.

Pam wasn't sure what the right thing to do in their eyes. She knew Grace probably wouldn't mind but she wasn't sure about Maggie and Julie. Before Pam could reply, Jim came racing up behind them and tapped Pam on the shoulder. "Hey," he breathed, wound up from running. "Got a second?"

Pam looked at her friends, who had all now turned to face Jim. If Jim was any bit uncomfortable with them all facing him, he didn't show it. He remained unfazed, waiting for an answer. "Um, I guess," Pam replied, almost embarrassed that he would even dare to talk to her with her friends there.

Jim nodded. "Hey, didn't you like get arrested yesterday?" he asked Maggie.

Pam's cheeks turned red, and she wanted to hide. Jim was unknowingly embarrassing Pam in front of her new friends. She couldn't believe he had really asked Maggie that. "Um, no. Get your facts straight," Maggie snapped.

Pam didn't want Maggie and Jim to argue so she spoke up. "Hey, I'm going to walk home with Jim today, you guys can go ahead."

"Okay, bye," Grace said, as she and the other girls turned away.

Jim and Pam walked out of the school building on onto the street without a sound. Jim turned to face her. "So…what's up? I didn't hear from you yesterday."

Pam looked at him. There was no way that he didn't know what happened yesterday, almost the whole grade knew. Yet, she didn't want to tell him that she had skipped school. "I'm really sorry, I should've called," Pam apologized.

"Uh, I called you…last night. Like always, on the walkie talkies," Jim admitted. "You didn't answer."

"Oh…" Pam sighed. Pam tried to remember what she was doing last night. "Oh! I was doing the dishes," she lied. She had been talking to Roy for a few hours on her cell.

"At nine-thirty?" Jim challenged.

Pam just shrugged. "Mom said."

"Okay…fine," Jim replied, a little hurt. "So, where were you exactly yesterday?"

"Oh, um, I went to the mall with Roy and some other people," Pam admitted, trying to act like this was a normal thing.

Jim raised an eyebrow. "Does your mom know?"

"No," Pam scoffed. Did he honestly think she would tell her mom that? "You're not going to tell her, right?"

"Of course not," Jim replied. The two continued walking in an awkward silence for a few minutes before Jim decided to break it. "Pam…I really don't think you should do this stuff."

"What stuff?"

"You know what I mean," Jim paused. "Skipping school, partying, hanging out with criminals."

"They're not criminals!" Pam snapped, angrily. She was mad that Jim would even try to tell her what to do. "You don't even know Maggie or Roy or any of them for that matter!"

"I know Roy enough to know that he's not good for you," Jim muttered, as Pam gaped at him in disbelief.

"You barely know him, Jim. I'm dating him," Pam replied, lowering her voice a bit.

"I'm just trying to help, Pam." They were now on the corner of their street. "The Pam I know isn't into this stuff. You would've never skipped or partied before," Jim explained, calmly.

"You don't know that."

"Yeah, I do. I've known you for ten years Pam, longer than any of them have," Jim replied, growing frustrated.

"So? Those ten years mean nothing, it's just bad timing," Pam said, giving him a steely glare.

"What? Are you saying that the ten years you spent with me –your best friend –mean nothing? I would think that for sure you wouldn't lie to me," Jim said, quietly. He couldn't believe her words; surely she wouldn't believe the impact they had on them.

"No…what I'm trying to say is that," Pam started.

"Do you think that they would've stuck with you for ten years? Through thick and thin? Do you think they would've even noticed you last year, or five years ago, or anytime ago?" Jim cut off.

Pam looked at him and saw the little five-year-old Jim she had once known, the one who was the first boy to ever hold her hand. Pam shook the image from her head and anger took over. "Maybe not but they do now and that's all that matters."

"You're changing Pam and not for the better. They're changing you…have you even painted once since you were with Roy?" Jim explained, nicely.

Pam thought about it; she hadn't. "I-I'm changing for the better Jim! I'm cool now and I have friends and I do regular teenage things," Pam spat.

"You had friends before…I was your friend, Pam. You were cool before," Jim said, softly.

"I didn't have cool friends before Roy happened and I certainly wasn't cool. I was a quiet, artsy, nerd who no one knew," Pam cried out. They were in front of her house now but Pam wasn't going in until this was settled.

"I thought you were cool," Jim whispered. "Your art it's amazing! You have a great personality…you're funny and nice. Roy should like you for who you are."

Pam was at a loss for words, taken aback by Jim's comments. "Well, he cares about the new me," Pam uttered after a few seconds.

"He should care about the old you, the real you!"

"No one cared about the old me, Jim! No one!" Pam screamed.

"I DID!" Jim yelled. Pam blinked; she had never heard Jim yell once, ever. "Can't you see that I've cared about you all along? I'm the only one at that whole freakin' school that gives a crap about you! I've cared about you, the real you, since the day I took you into that tree house."

They both stopped for a minute and the only sound was that of the clattering leaves and wind rippling through the trees. "Exactly…only you cared about me. So, in the eyes of everyone else no one cared," Pam whispered.

"Since when did we need everyone, Pam? When we were little we used to want to run away to a world where there was only you and me," Jim said, quietly.

Pam breathed in, she did remember that. "That was when we were little, Jim."

"So? We're still the same people," Jim argued.

"No, we're not. Everyone's changing, I'm changing…you need to grow up, Jim," Pam stated, clearly. Pam was a little shocked at her own words. Not once in her entire life had she been intentionally mean to Jim…until now.

Jim swallowed a lump in his throat that he wasn't even aware was there. "I truly don't get it, Pam," Jim mumbled. "Yeah, I thought you might change a bit when you started dating Roy. But I didn't think you would change who you are for him. I didn't think you would be…mean." Jim whispered the last word as if he was cussing in front of his mother.

Pam felt tears prick at the corners of her eyes, she had never meant for this to happen. Jim looked so hurt like a puppy that had just got kicked. She even thought he might start crying. Jim turned his back and started walking towards his house. "Jim…wait!" Pam called, feeling guilty.

"I've got to go…I've got some growing-up to do," Jim replied, his voice breaking on the last word. Jim gave Pam one last glance before walking the rest of the way to his house.

_**So what did you think? Good or bad? Boring or interesting? I hope you all thought their fight was realistic. It was really hard to write so I'd really appreciate feedback. What do you think should happen next? Please review and I'll update soon. I will be writing that Casino Night two-shot by the way. R&R! ;) **_


	15. The New Girl

Chapter 15- The New Girl

_**Author's Note- Hi everybody! Thanks to the few people who reviewed last chapter, they were greatly appreciated. I know people are reading this so please review guys, it really helps me update faster and lets me know if this is worth continuing. Okay, this takes place a week after their fight. Here's the chapter, enjoy! ;)**_

It had been a long week since Jim and Pam had gotten into their fight. Not much had changed to the rest of the world but everything had changed for them. There were no nightly calls made, no notes passed, or eye rolls shared over Dwight. Jim thought that Pam didn't even care that they had broken off their friendship. She still seemed the same as before; totally being Roy's puppy dog and following around those ditzy girls all day long. As far as Jim was aware, they hadn't skipped school or done anything majorly bad since their fall out. Basketball practice had been hard for him though. Seeing Roy was just another irritating reminder that Pam wasn't his. What was even worse was that Pam, Julie, Maggie, and Grace watched all of their practices from the bleachers. Even though he'd noticed her every day at practice, he wouldn't look at her or talk to her. Pam didn't make any moves to talk to him either.

"Halpert! Get down on the blocks and Roy will pass you the ball from behind the arc, okay?" Coach Conway barked.

"Okay," Jim replied.

"Let's go! Run the play again, boys," their coach directed.

The starting five which included Jim ran back to the other end of the court. Roy had been starting for the past week because their shooting guard had broken his arm. Roy got the ball passed to him at mid-court and took it from there. Jim dashed down to the right block and waited for Roy to hit him in the middle of his stride. Roy dribbled all the way up to the foul line and Coach started yelling at him but instead, Roy just chucked the ball at Jim's head. Jim ducked and the ball sailed into the bleachers. "What the heck, Roy?" Jim yelled, standing under the basket.

Roy walked up to him. "You're supposed to catch the ball, retard."

"You're supposed to throw it at my chest not my head!" Jim retorted, not backing down in the slightest.

"Maybe if you spent less time fawning over Pam and more time paying attention to the game…" Roy muttered, smirking.

Jim rolled his eyes. "I don't even like Pam anymore, not even as a friend. You win, Roy…you get Pam. I don't even care." Jim was pretty sure that no one else could hear their conversation, after all everyone was on the other side of the court.

Roy shrugged. "Good, you were bringing down her popularity."

"Boys! Get the ball!" their coach shouted.

Jim turned away from Roy and dashed to the bleachers to get the ball. It had rolled all the way to the back which was a pain to get. Jim got down on his knees and started crawling under when the ball rolled to him. He scooped up the ball and looked up to see a purple Converse shoe in front of him. Attached to that shoe was a pretty girl. Jim thought she must've been new because he didn't recognize her. She had wavy brown hair that went down to her shoulder blades and dark green eyes that seemed to sparkle. "Are you okay?" she laughed.

"Yeah, yeah, um, I'm great," Jim stammered. This girl was definitely beautiful. "Are you new here?"

"Yeah, I actually just started yesterday. Um, I'm Riley," Riley smiled.

"I'm," Jim started.

"Jim!" his coach yelled.

"Jim," Riley said.

"Yeah," Jim mumbled.

"Well, it looks like you have to go. Um, I'll talk to you later," Riley offered.

"Later," Jim repeated.

"Yeah like after practice," Riley suggested, smiling.

"Cool." Jim ran back to his teammates with a goofy smile on his face. The rest of the practice flew by and soon the whole team was in the locker room.

Mark tapped Jim's shoulder as Jim searched for a stick of deodorant. "Who's that girl?" Mark asked, smirking.

"Oh, she's new here. Her name is Riley," Jim shrugged.

"She's pretty, man," Mark smirked.

"I'm not blind, Mark, I can see her," Jim replied. "I'm actually going to go talk to her right now."

"Already? Wow, you're fast," Mark laughed.

"Who's fast?" Roy asked, walking by their lockers.

"Jim. He's just about dating that new girl," Mark explained.

Jim rolled his eyes. "We're not dating yet."

"You mean the hot one who gave you the ball?" Roy questioned, suddenly interested.

Jim was a bit shocked that Roy would call another girl hot when he was with Pam but then again, it was Roy. "Yeah, that's the one," Jim mumbled.

"She's way too good for you, man," Roy grumbled.

"Guys, chill. I've barely talked to her," Jim interjected, slinging his mesh basketball bag on his shoulder.

"Yeah…for all we know she could be a total anime nerd," Mark laughed.

"She'd still be hot," Roy replied.

"Hey, you're with Pam," Jim commented.

"I know," Roy said.

"So…you shouldn't be talking about other girls," Jim explained.

"Hey, you're not friends with Pam," Roy mocked. "So…you shouldn't be worried."

Roy laughed and Jim rolled his eyes, walking out of the locker room. Jim ran up to Riley, spotting Pam out of the corner of his eye. He was hoping that this might evoke the slightest bit of jealousy from her. He didn't think that it would though. He was the one who was crushing on her, she only had thought of him as a friend. "Hey Riley!" he called.

"Oh, there you are," she smiled. "You did great in practice."

The two of them were walking out of the gym and Pam was watching, wondering what was going on. "Thanks," Jim replied. "So…are you walking home?"

"Yeah, actually," Riley smiled.

"Can I walk you?" Jim offered.

"That would be great."

"Where are you from?" Jim asked, once they were on the street.

"I came from Ohio," Riley replied.

"That's cool. Are you a Buckeyes fan?" Jim questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah, a big one," Riley laughed. "They killed Penn State this year, so don't even go there."

Jim smiled, appreciating her sense of humor. "You like the school so far?"

"It's good. Well, I mean it's only school," Riley explained.

Jim laughed. "Wait until you meet Dwight."

"Who's he?"

"Well, he's a very interesting kid in our grade," Jim smirked.

"Will you introduce me?" Riley smiled.

"It would be my pleasure," Jim quipped. He wanted to ask her out but wasn't exactly sure how.

"Does your girlfriend mind you walking with me?" Riley asked, politely.

Jim stared at her, confused. "I don't have a girlfriend."

"Oh…sorry! Geez, I'm really stupid. I just saw that redheaded girl staring at you for most of practice and I assumed…" Riley drifted off.

Jim's eyes widened. Redheaded girl? Did she mean Pam? He hadn't noticed her staring at all. "Which redhead?" he asked. He knew that was a stupid question; there was only one in the entire gym during practice.

"The one sitting with all the popular girls."

"Oh no, that's Pam. We're not dating, she's with Roy," Jim explained.

"You mean the loud one?" Riley asked.

"That would be him," Jim mumbled. "So do you have a boyfriend back in Ohio?"

"Nope, I'm single," Riley smiled, shyly. "Oh, this is my house."

They stopped in front of a medium-sized house and Jim shoved his hands in his pockets. "Um, this might be kind of weird because I like just met you but…"

"Yes?" Riley smiled.

"Would you like to go out with me…like on a date?" Jim asked, shyly.

"I would love to," Riley agreed.

"Is Friday night good?" Jim suggested.

"That's great," Riley replied.

"Okay, well, I'll see you tomorrow," Jim waved.

"Bye," Riley smiled.

_**So what did you think? Good or bad? Boring or interesting? The reviews dropped a lot last chapter, so I would really like if you guys would review this one. So…Jim's got a new girl, will Pam be jealous? Lol. Maybe. R&R! ;) **_


	16. It's Me, Pam

Chapter 16- It's Me, Pam

**Author's Note- Hi everybody! Thanks for all the awesome reviews last chapter; I got more than I ever had for this story! You guys are so nice. I'm glad you all like where this is going. ;) Sorry that I'm a bit late in updating. My mom went to visit her dad in Spain while she still can; he has lung cancer and just had another chemo treatment yesterday. So I've been holding down the fort with my younger siblings and have been a bit busier than usual. Here's the chapter, enjoy! ;)**

* * *

Riley and Jim had now been dating for two weeks and it had been three weeks since Jim and Pam last talked. Jim really liked Riley but felt a little like he was using her to get over Pam. Not that he was really getting over Pam. There had never really been any romantic 'them' to get over. It was homeroom and Jim, Roy, Riley, and Pam were all in the same class. They had been avoiding each other and were almost pretending that the other didn't exist. Jim looked past Riley's shoulder as Pam got up to go to the bathroom. He still had that personal GPS for her burned in his head; it used to be that they could glance at each other at the exact same time and always make eye contact. Now, eye contact was the last thing that Jim wanted. Jim shook his thoughts about Pam from his head and smiled at Riley. "They're showing that new comedy at the movies this weekend, want to go?" Jim offered.

"Of course," Riley grinned. "Which one is it?"

"_The Guilt Trip. _It looks funny," Jim commented.

"Sounds great." Riley's jade eyes widened at something behind Jim and Jim snapped his head around to find Roy.

"What's up?" Roy greeted. Jim raised an eyebrow to himself, wondering why he blatantly began talking to the two of them.

"Nothing much," Riley replied, sweetly. Jim wrapped his long arm around her, protectively. He adored how sweet she was but almost wished that it was Pam in his arms.

"Yeah? Haven't seen you in a while, Halpert," Roy said, casually.

Jim rolled his eyes but answered the question anyways. "I see you every day at basketball, Roy," Jim muttered.

"Oh right, right," Roy smiled. "So are you two an item now?"

Riley flashed Jim a cute smile which he instantly returned. "I guess you could say so," Riley giggled.

"Oh," Roy grumbled. "Well, you look nice today, Riley."

Jim shot Roy a glare. Was he seriously going to try to take Riley away from him too? "Thank you, Roy," Riley replied, unfazed by Roy's attempts to flirt with her.

"You're welcome." Roy glanced back at Jim and the corners of his mouth lifted upwards. "Riley…as Jim's boyfriend you should know that…" Roy paused and Jim sighed. "He uses women's deodorant. I don't know why but he does."

Jim opened his mouth to reply but closed it when Riley leaned into his shoulder, inhaling his scent. "No he doesn't," she stated. "He smells like Tide and…" She inhaled again. "Cinnamon rolls."

Roy scoffed as Pam walked up behind them. "Hey…" Pam greeted, uneasily. She seemed to be looking anywhere but Jim.

"Hey babe," Roy smirked, kissing her just because he could. Jim winced and looked away at Riley.

"You're Pam, right?" Riley confirmed, smiling at her. Riley knew who Pam was by now because the popular kids were very well-known around the school.

Pam forced a smile at Jim's girlfriend. "Yeah, that's me. So…you're Jim's girlfriend."

"Yeah, Riley's my name." Pam nodded, understanding. She had already known who Riley was; she asked her friends if they knew anything about her.

For the first time in the whole conversation, Jim looked up at Pam. His sapphire eyes fixed on her emerald green ones instantly and for once, they weren't able to read each other. Jim bit his lip, weighing his options. He wanted to be out of the conversation as soon as possible. "Long time, no see," Jim mumbled.

"Yeah," Pam agreed.

Roy shuffled his weight from foot to foot and Jim ran a hand through his caramel hair. Riley smiled at Pam, not sensing the awkwardness. "So, how do you two know each other?" Riley asked Jim and Pam.

"Actually, we met," Pam started.

"We don't really know each other that well," Jim cut off, looking away from Pam. Jim could feel Pam's face falling but it served her right. Three weeks ago, she had crushed him and it was time for her to get a taste of her own medicine.

"Oh," Riley mumbled.

"Yeah, well, Pammy and I are going to go back to our um, other friends," Roy declared, taking Pam's hand. "I'll see you around, Riles."

Once the other couple was out of earshot, Jim turned to face Riley. "Riles?" he repeated.

Riley laughed. "I knew guys like that before. They're such cheese balls and think that they're the hottest guy to ever set foot on Earth."

"And?" Jim continued.

"Well, as far as I'm concerned, the hottest guy is standing right in front of me," Riley smirked, playfully.

Jim blushed. "Thanks."

"I mean it though, I really like you Jim," Riley admitted.

"And I really like you, too," Jim agreed, leaning over and kissing her softly.

Pam turned away from Julie and Maggie's conversation just in time to see this. She felt a deep pang in her chest and wondered what it was. Surely, she wasn't jealous of Jim and Riley's relationship…was she? Pam tried to shake the thoughts of Jim from her head but she felt really guilty. It seemed that after all this time, it really was Pam's fault. Pam sighed, if only she wasn't so mean to Jim.

"Pam? Hello? Why are you staring at those two lovebirds over there?" Julie asked, waving a hand in front of her friend's face.

Pam snapped back to reality and smiled at her friends. "Oh, I was just thinking."

"About what?" Grace wondered.

"Nothing important," Pam assured them.

"Well, you guys know that the state championship game is next week," Maggie announced. The girls all grinned, each of their boyfriends played on the basketball team but none of them were as good as Jim.

"Yeah," Julie squealed. "That boy over there is going to make us win."

They all turned to follow her gaze. That boy was indeed, Jim Halpert. "He's really good but he'd be better if he was hotter," Maggie commented.

"He is cute," Grace agreed. "But cute not hot, although he probably has abs under those shirts he wears."

Pam blushed, thinking of all the times she had seen Jim shirtless. There were a lot of times. During the spring and summer, they always went to the public pool, beach, or up to her cottage with both their families. Pam knew first hand that there were indeed abs under there. The other girls began droning on and on about the basketball game and Pam just smiled and added occasional 'yeahs.' Her thoughts were elsewhere at the moment, though the subject of her thoughts was a mere ten feet away from her.

* * *

"Hey mom, I'm home!" Jim shouted, as he walked through the back door. It was around six-thirty and basketball had ended an hour ago but he and Riley were hanging out at Scranton Sweets. Jim dropped his duffel bag on the kitchen floor and went straight to the kitchen cabinets for a snack. "Mom!" he called again. There was no answer. Jim turned and found a Post-It note on the fridge door. It read; _Dad and I are grocery shopping and your brother is still at a friend's. There's left over lasagna in the fridge. Love, Mom. _Jim nodded to himself and was walking to the bathroom when something caught his eye. Their answering machine was blinking, meaning that there was a message on it. Jim walked over and pressed the play button.

_"Hi Jim. It's me, Pam…we haven't really talked in a while and I think we should. Talk. Um, so yeah. Give me a call, tonight. On walkie-talkies, the phone, or whatever…I just need to hear your voice, Halpert. I'm going crazy here. That's all, bye." _

**Cliffhanger! So what did you think? Good or bad? Interesting or boring? Sorry that it took a week to update, I've been busy. I'll try to update within the week, like usual. Please leave a review. Thanks again for all the kind feedback last chapter, it really keeps me going. R&R! ;)**


	17. My Fault

Chapter 17- My Fault

**Author's Note- Hi everybody! Thanks for all the reviews last chapter, you guys are amazing! ;) This chapter is from where we left off (obviously…that's kinda the point of a cliffhanger). I think that this story will go to 20-22 chapters, if anyone cares. Here's the chapter, enjoy! ;)**

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Jim let out a breath that he hadn't realized he'd been holding. Pam had called him. Pam had really called him. A part of him wanted to run over to her house and say that everything was fine, that they should just get over this. A bigger part of him wanted to scream at her for everything. How could she think that after all that had happened she could just call him up after an awkward classroom conversation? Jim wasn't sure what to do. His head was spinning and he felt like he was going to throw up. Jim played the message over a few more times, her words burning into his mind. The boy sighed and paced back and forth. If he called Pam, they might make up and everything could go back to normal. But…it wouldn't be normal, in fact it would be far from normal. Pam would still be highly popular and dating Roy while Jim would be dating Riley, who was no substitute for Pam. Jim shook his head and walked up to the house phone. He bit his lip and picked up the phone, his fingers dashing across the buttons until they typed out a well-known number. Jim almost hung up after the first ring but the familiar voice on the other end stopped him. "Hello? Jim, is that you?" Mrs. Beesly greeted on the other end.

Jim hesitated, weighing his options. "Yeah, it's me, um, hi. Is Pam there?" He heard some shuffling around in the background and he prayed that she wasn't out with Roy somewhere.

"Yes, she is. She's in the bathroom actually. It's nice to hear from you, I haven't in a while," Mrs. Beesly replied.

"Um, yeah," Jim mumbled, his sole thought was talking to Pam.

"I know this is a bit weird of me to ask but…have you noticed anything different about Pam lately? Like her behavior?" Mrs. Beesly questioned.

Jim nodded to himself. If Pam's own mom could tell that something was up then he wasn't going crazy. What was he supposed to say? Pam seems perfectly fine? Or Pam is completely changing, please help me? Jim would hate for Pam to think that he was ratting her out. "Well, like she's dating Roy, if that's what you mean," Jim muttered.

"Right, right. Are you friends with that boy?" she asked.

Jim sighed. He was usually a hundred percent fine with talking to Pam's mom but now all he wanted was to talk to Pam. "No, Mrs. Beesly, not really. Is Pam out of the bathroom yet?"

"Oh yeah. It was nice talking to you, dear. She's right here," Mrs. Beesly finished. Jim mumbled 'bye' as he heard some shifting around and noise on the other end.

"Jim! Hi!" Pam exclaimed, happily.

Jim didn't want to but he felt his mouth lifting into a smiled. He thanked God that this was a phone conversation and not a face-to-face one. "Hi Pam," Jim mumbled. "What did you want to talk about?"

Pam moved into the next room, out of everyone else's earshot. "Um, you know. Us. Well, what used to be us. I don't want to fight anymore Jim. I'm tired of this. We're best friends, not mortal enemies," Pam explained, hopefully.

"Oh. So you conveniently call me three weeks after you exploded in my face? Did Roy put you up to this?" Jim demanded. He couldn't take it anymore. He couldn't take being in love with a girl that was taken. He couldn't take pretending to like another girl. But most of all, he couldn't take Pam pretending that everything was alright.

"What? What are you talking about?" Pam shot back. If Jim wanted to be angry, well, she could be too.

"Is he like on the other end or something? One of his sick pranks?" Jim asked, softer than before.

Pam gasped, wondering how he could honestly think that. "No! Absolutely not! Will you just leave Roy out of this?"

"Roy's the one who got us in this," Jim challenged. He heard an incoherent word mumbled on the other end, probably a swear under Pam's breath.

"Look, Jim, Roy has nothing to do with any of this," Pam said, raising her voice.

"He has everything to do with this!" Jim replied, frustrated. "Before him, we never ever fought, not even once. We were inseparable, Pam. And now, if we even talk to each other…it ends in a fight."

"That's why I'm calling you, Jim. To stop fighting," Pam explained, calming down a bit.

"Yeah, I got that," Jim mumbled. "But you're turning everything I say against me."

Pam gaped at his comment. She couldn't believe it, how was this her fault? "No, I'm not. You're trying to put this all on me just like usual."

"Like usual?" Jim repeated, bewildered.

"Yeah. You think that it's all Roy and I's fault and it's not. It's yours," Pam spat. She could picture him now, pacing back and forth while running a tired hand through his chestnut hair.

"Really? It's my fault?" Jim challenged.

"Yeah." Pam paused as she heard heavy breathing on the other end, wondering if he had hung up. Just as she was about to check if he did, Jim spoke up.

"Well…I guess you're right," Jim replied, calmly. "It is my fault. It's my fault that I care for you. It's my fault that I became best friends with you. It's my fault for trying to protect you. It's my fault for voicing my opinion against Roy. It's my fault for trying to reach out to you. It's my fault for telling you that all this popularity you have now is going to leave you once Roy does. It's my fault that I still think and care about you every second even when you're a total jerk. It's my fault that I'm in love with you. So yeah, I guess it is my fault."

Pam nearly dropped the phone. Had Jim just said he was in love with her? Her best friend after ten years had just said he loved her. Roy hadn't even said that. Was Jim being crazy? Pam was wondering if she even heard him correctly or just imagined it. This was so weird but at the same time, Pam wondered if she felt the same way. She shook her head, convincing herself that even if he had said it; she was still with Roy. "Wait, what did you just say?" Pam asked.

"That it's my fault," Jim replied, confused.

"Before that…" Pam muttered.

Jim thought back. He knew that in his head, he thought that it was his fault because he loved her but he hadn't said that out loud…had he? Jim slammed his hand against the wall; he couldn't have told her that. He'd never even admitted it out loud before. "I said that it's my fault that I still care about you when you're a jerk," Jim lied.

"No, you didn't. You said that you were in love with me," Pam replied, softly. She knew that she had just put the two of them in a really awkward position but she had to hear the truth.

Jim sighed. "No, I didn't. I said that I loved you, not that I was in love with you."

"You love me?" Pam whispered.

"No!" Jim backtracked. "I mean, like as a friend, yeah. I love all my friends, as friends. Not romantically. I'm not in love with you, no, no way. That would be weird, really weird especially since I have a girlfriend now. And you have Roy and that crap."

Pam nodded to herself but she wondered if he was really in love with her. At this time, she wished that she could see his face. She could always tell when he was lying. Pam almost wished that he was in love with her but had no idea why. "Right…that's what I thought because of that airhead you're dating and all."

Jim bit his lip, hard. "Riley's not an airhead. She's really kind and smart, Pam."

"I'm sure she is," Pam spat sarcastically.

"She is and if I were you, I'd shut up. You're the one who hangs out with those mean girls all the time…and you're kind of becoming one," Jim responded. He waited for a response, wondering if he'd gone too far or not.

Pam scoffed. "It doesn't matter to me what you think. You're not even my friend anymore, Jim. You're nothing to me…just a chapter of my life that I just finished. A pretty crappy chapter, if you ask me."

Jim almost chucked the phone against the wall. She was unbelievable. All of this was unbelievable. "You know what Pam? I know you really good, better than all of those idiots. You want to know what I think?"

"Not really," Pam muttered.

"I think that the real you is still in there, somewhere deep inside you. I also think that you know it's in you. I know that you're still the same Pam inside but it's like you've put a mask on the outside. This is all an act," Jim explained.

"No…" Pam protested. She was mad now because she knew what Jim was saying was true.

"Yup and you know it. You're pretending to be a mean girl, the real you could never be that cruel. But it's really obvious. It's like a toddler trying to fit into her parent's clothes. It doesn't fit," Jim stated, softly.

Pam was gaping at his explanation. "T-that's not true. You don't even know me anymore, Jim."

"I know you well enough, Pam. Well enough to know that that girl is still inside you and she's tired of being hidden away."

"You're crazy!" Pam cried.

Jim ignored her comment. He knew he was crazy, crazy for her. "I just hope that that girl takes off the mask soon because I'm sick and tired of this whole act," Jim admitted.

Pam sighed but she didn't want to give in. She wasn't going to let a loser like Jim put her in her place. Pam laughed into the phone on purpose. "Roy was right. You are a loser, Jim. Don't know why I didn't see that before but I'm glad I do now."

"Drop the act, Pam," Jim pressed. "It's not funny anymore."

"Bye loser," Pam muttered, clicking off her phone.

Jim looked down at the phone; Pam had just hung up on him. Jim was suddenly glad he was home alone. He screamed in frustration and threw the phone at the wall. Jim ran a hand through his hair and felt his eyes well up with tears. His best friend was leaving him. No. His best friend was already gone.

* * *

**So what did you think? Good or bad? Boring or interesting? Please let me know in a review. This chapter was hard to write. :P I will have Dwight in the next chapter, couldn't squeeze him in in this one. Continue reviewing and I'll update soon. R&R! ;) **


	18. Best Friends First

Chapter 18- Best Friends First

**Author's Note- Hey everybody! Thanks for all the awesome reviews last chapter, I love all of you! ;) So, I just got a Tumblr recently, if you guys would follow me, which would be awesome. My Tumblr name is the same as my pen name; iluvwillschuester. Sorry that it took over a week to update; my basketball season just started and the semester just ended…so it was a really busy week. Here's the chapter, enjoy! ;)**

* * *

It was three days after Pam had yelled at Jim over the phone, making their fight even worse. They had been avoiding each other at school and staying with their respective others. Jim had never been so ashamed in his life. He couldn't believe he told Pam he loved her –over the phone, of all places. He was hoping that Pam believed him when he said that he meant as a friend, or else he was screwed. If she told Roy, then things would never get better for him. Riley waved a hand in front of Jim's face and laughed. "Are you okay? You were like zoning out."

Jim smiled at his girlfriend. "Sorry, just thinking about other stuff."

"What kind of stuff?" Riley asked, looping her hand into his. They were sitting in Jim's basement, half-watching a rerun of _Modern Family. _

Jim shook his head, hoping that the thoughts of Pam would go away. "Not that important kind of stuff," he replied.

"Mmkay," Riley nodded. "Do you ever go in that old tree house that's in your backyard?"

Jim's head snapped up, surprised. "No, not really…why?" he replied. He hadn't gone in there in three weeks, since Pam and him got into their huge mess.

"It looks cool," Riley commented.

Jim grinned. "Do you want to go in there?"

"Sounds good to me," Riley agreed.

"Alright, come on," Jim said, pulling her up. The two bounded up the steps, hands intertwined. "Our shoes are by the back door," Jim mentioned.

Riley nodded and slipped on her Converse, following her boyfriend out the door. "It's nice out here," Riley announced. It was a perfect fall day; leaves were falling and the sky was a canvas of colors.

"Sure is." Jim walked over to the ladder and motioned for Riley to go up. "Ladies first."

Riley climbed up the ladder very slowly as if she thought falling would kill her. Jim wanted to laugh, thinking of all the times that Pam scrambled up that ladder as if her life depended on it. Once Riley climbed onto the platform, Jim swiftly climbed up the ladder and hopped up next to Riley. "It's so cool up here!" Riley exclaimed, glancing around.

Jim shrugged. "I guess, I've had it forever." The tree house hadn't really changed much over the years; there was still the beanbags and a few kids toys along with some photos of the boys. Riley stood up and walked from picture to picture. "It's like taking a walk down memory lane," Jim laughed.

"How old were you here?" Riley asked, pointing to a picture. Jim squinted at the picture of him and Tom playing basketball on a Little Tikes hoop.

"I must've been like four," Jim replied.

Riley nodded. "You were adorable."

Jim blushed, balancing his weight from foot to foot. He noticed Riley inspecting a picture of a seven-year-old Jim and a familiar redhead. Jim immediately panicked and prayed she wouldn't recognize Pam. "Who is that little girl with you?" Riley wondered. "Your old girlfriend?"

Jim could feel his face heating up and Riley smirked. "A-a cousin. She's a cousin of mine," Jim lied.

"You guys looked like good friends," Riley commented. She paused, glancing at the picture again before turning to face Jim. "She looks kind of familiar but I have no idea why."

"Hmm, there are a lot of redheaded girls in this world," Jim joked.

Riley laughed. "But you do like brunettes better, right?"

Jim smiled, uneasily. "Of course." He wrapped Riley into a big bear hug and placed his head on top of hers. He was facing the picture and biting his lip, he stared at the picture until Pam's green eyes became fuzzy. He remembered taking that picture. They were seven and were in Jim's backyard, having a family barbecue. Jim smiled at the memory, until the pain of the new Pam sliced through him. He pulled away from Riley quickly, as if he'd just been shocked.

"Are you okay?" Riley asked, concerned.

"I'm fine," Jim mumbled.

"Is it the championship game nerves? Because I know you're going to do great," Riley assured him. It was Monday and the big game was on Friday. The whole team had been practicing non-stop and for the star player, Jim, it was a huge deal.

"Thanks," Jim said. He glanced up at the ceiling and grinned when he saw engravings from Tom, Pete, and himself from years and years ago. Riley followed his gaze and laughed.

"Did you guys make those?"

Jim nodded. "Yeah, as you can tell…my penmanship as a five-year-old was pretty amazing," he joked, playfully. Riley laughed and traced her finger on the words engraved in the ceiling. Her eyes darted over to an arrow that was engraved next to a picture.

"What's the arrow for?" Riley asked, pointing.

Jim's face paled. He'd totally forgotten that a few years after he and Pam engraved their names into the wall, they drew an arrow next to the picture that hid the names. He remembered that just a few days ago, Jim had told Riley that he didn't even know Pam. That he didn't even know her. Jim didn't know a lot about relationships but he knew that lying was bad. Really bad. So, knowing this, Jim spoke up. "I honestly…don't remember," Jim mumbled.

"Is there something behind the picture?" Riley questioned. Jim shook his head but Riley was already moving the frame.

"There's really nothing…"

Riley put the picture down and glanced at the wall. "Jim and Pam," she read. Riley turned around to look at Jim. The first thing her eyes met was the picture behind him…the one of a younger Jim and Pam. Riley's emerald eyes grew wide with realization. "Who's Pam, Jim? For real."

"I-I…" Jim started. He knew there was no way out of this one, he had to tell the truth. "The girl in the picture."

"The redhead?"

"Yes, the redhead," Jim replied.

"And I'm going to guess she's not your cousin," Riley interjected.

Jim sighed. "No, she's not."

Riley hesitated. "Is she that girl with Roy? The one that you said you didn't even know?"

"Um, yeah…that would be Pam," Jim mumbled.

"What is going on, Jim? Really. I don't like to be lied to, especially by my boyfriend," Riley demanded.

"It's not really a big deal, nothing important," Jim muttered.

"Well, all these 'nothing important' things that you're hiding from me, keep adding up," Riley shot back. "Please tell me," she said, softly, calming down a bit.

"Pam and I are –I mean- used to be best friends. Since we were five and we met…pretty much inseparable. Even in high school and middle school…until she started dating Roy. She became…you know, popular. We got into a few little fights and then a few days ago, a big one. Now, things are done between us. We're not even casual friends," Jim explained, sadly. "See? Nothing important."

"That is important…to you," Riley replied. "I can tell. That's why you've been sort of distant lately, isn't it?"

"I guess," Jim mumbled.

"You like her, don't you?" Riley asked.

"Pam?" Jim repeated, dumbstruck.

"I saw it in the way you looked at her and the way she looked at you. Remember how the first time I met you; I thought you were dating Pam?"

"Yeah…"

"It was because of that and when I asked you, you got this faraway longing look in your eyes…like you wished you were," Riley explained. Jim didn't reply, just glanced at the old engraving. "You used me, didn't you? To make Pam jealous."

"No! No, I didn't!" Jim stammered. "I swear, Riley. I really do like you."

"And I really like you too," Riley whispered. "But that's all it was. 'Like' not love. I think you might like me but you love Pam."

"I-I don't love Pam, I don't even like her," Jim argued.

"Yeah, you do," Riley said. "And that's what's hurting you the most. The fact that you're stuck in the past and she's not even looking back. But she is, trust me. I know that she probably is going crazy without you. And Roy's an ape, she'll realize this soon…and come running to you."

"I'm really sorry, Riley, I really am," Jim apologized. "I don't even know how to be a boyfriend, honestly."

"You have to be a best friend first," Riley smiled. She leaned over and kissed Jim on the cheek. "I'll see you around, Jim."

"Where are you going?" Jim asked.

"Home," Riley replied.

"Are we…done?"

"Dating, yeah. Being friends…I hope not," Riley replied.

Jim smiled. "In that case, see you around."

* * *

**So what did you think? Good or bad? Boring or interesting? I'm so sorry that it took two weeks to get this up, I just started my own basketball season, I was sick, and the semester was ending. So yeah, I was busy. But I'll try to update within a week, I promise. Please leave a review letting me know what you thought of this. Also, if you have a tumblr, please follow me, I'm iluvwillschuester. I post Jam and Office stuff as well as Glee and Wemma stuff. R&R! ;)**


	19. Meaning of Love

Chapter 19- Meaning of Love

**Author's Note- Hey everyone! Thanks for all the lovely reviews last chapter, there was a slight dip but I was happy to hear from the people who did comment. Sorry for updating kind of late, basketball is like running my life right now and taking over my schedule. :P Well, anyways, in case anyone forgot the basketball championship is on Friday (in the story, lol) and right now we've skipped ahead to Wednesday. Here's the chapter, enjoy! ;)**

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It was Wednesday morning, in the hall, and Pam and Roy were talking with their friends about the championship. Lately, it seemed like the championship was the only that Roy cared about. It was always _championship this _or _championship that._ It kind of made Pam wish that he was just the slightest bit more humble. Roy turned to Pam, finally aborting the basketball talk. "Want to skip homeroom?" he offered, a mischievous smile playing across his lips.

Pam hesitated. They had skipped one more day of school since the first time but that one she hadn't really enjoyed. It felt wrong. Well, everything did lately, now that she no longer had Jim by her side. It felt wrong to be with Roy, just like it felt wrong to not talk to Jim for days. "Do we have to?" Pam asked, sighing.

"Well, we're all going," Roy replied, motioning to the group. "Did you not hear our whole conversation before this? We're going to get burgers."

"At eight in the morning?" Pam questioned. Had this not been her boyfriend, she would have been laughing.

"Duh," Jake laughed. "When else?"

"You don't have to eat any," Julie assured her. "I'm not going to; I'm trying this new diet."

"Again?" Grace raised an eyebrow.

Before Julie could start arguing with her friend, Pam spoke up. "I-I actually don't feel like it today, guys. Kind of tired."

"Come on, Pam! Please," Roy pleaded, taking her hand.

Pam sighed again, thinking it through. If Jim noticed that she was the only one that wasn't gone, maybe it would be a step in the right direction. Not a full recovery, of course, but a step. And sometimes, a step was all you needed. "Sorry, I'm not going to today. I nearly got caught last time by my mom," Pam lied.

Roy groaned. "Fine, Beesly, you're no fun. I'll call you after school." Pam nodded, silently, and their crowd took off down the hall. Pam didn't understand what the point of them coming to school was if they were just going to go somewhere else. After her friends had rounded the corner, Pam walked to homeroom. It was a class with Jim, just like most of hers. As Pam walked into the classroom, she realized that she would have no one to talk to now. With her group of friends gone and Jim and her not on speaking terms, it was going to be a lonely thirty minutes. Pam walked to her seat and sat down, quietly. The bell rang a few seconds later, as the class rushed to their desks. Their teacher, Ms. Drew, walked to the front of the class, clapping her hands together. Pam glanced around but Jim wasn't anywhere to be found. Ms. Drew opened her mouth to speak, just as a messy haired teen burst through the door.

"Sorry, I'm late," Jim said, attempting to pat down his unkempt hair that was currently sticking up in all directions. A few students snickered and Jim's lips curled into a half-smile. Pam felt herself smiling, knowing that he woke up late for sure.

Jim's teacher couldn't help but smile at the boy. "Do you have a pass?" she asked, holding her hand out.

Jim reached deep into his jean's pockets, digging around for the piece of paper. "Somewhere around here…" he mumbled. He reached around to his back pocket and pulled out a yellow slip, finally. "Aha! Here it is." He handed the slip to Ms. Drew, beaming.

His teacher glanced down at the piece of paper, stating that he was tardy. Jim hadn't been able to get the office to excuse it, even with his charm. Ms. Drew motioned for him to come closer before whispering something to Jim. Jim nodded, grinning, and took his seat. Pam heard him say to someone that their teacher excused it for him. Jim dumped his backpack by his feet and looked to the front of the room, with the other kids. "So," Ms. Drew started. "As I was saying, today we're going to do a partner exercise. Something simple, just to get your brains turning. You guys can each grab a partner and I'm going to go around and give you guys a slip of paper; with a commonly used word on it. I want you guys to define this word…in your own words. What you think the word means, not what the dictionary says. Okay? Go ahead in groups now and I'll pass them out."

As soon as their teacher finished talking, students were busting across the room to their best friends. Pam sulked in her seat, realizing that she would most likely end up alone. Jim didn't even get up from his chair, the same loneliness clicking in his head. Pam raised her hand, timidly. Her teacher motioned for her to ask the question. "Can we work…like alone?" Pam asked, shyly. She could feel Jim looking at her as she spoke and fought the urge to glance back at him.

Ms. Drew glanced from Jim to Pam and then back again. "No, you and Jim will just work together."

Jim averted his eyes and made himself busy with opening his notebook as Pam walked over, sighing. "Hey," Pam greeted. Jim didn't look up, instead turning as Ms. Drew handed them their piece of paper.

"There isn't a problem between you two, is there?" their teacher wondered.

"No, not at all," Jim lied.

"That's what I thought, you two are really close," she replied, before moving to another student's group.

Pam grimaced. "So. Hi."

Jim looked at her, his blue-green eyes glazed over; indicating that he wasn't really paying much attention. "Hey," he grumbled, staring down at their word.

"Um, what's our word?" Pam asked, politely. She was obviously trying to break the ice and avoid the elephant in the room at the same time. And it wasn't working.

Jim's eyes were practically burning through the paper as he spoke up. "Love," Jim mumbled, the syllables blending together so that Pam couldn't understand.

"Come again?" Pam squeaked.

"Our word," Jim started, with fake enthusiasm. "Is love."

"Oh," Pam sighed. She couldn't believe that out of all words, they ended up with this one. The irony. "Um, that's a strong word."

"Sure is," Jim replied, finally meeting her eyes. Pam instantly heard Jim's words ringing in her ears; _It's not my fault that I'm in love with you._ Surely, love was a strong word; making Pam think of why Jim used it.

"Well…what do you think love means, Jim?" Pam wondered, trying to peer behind his emotional shield that he had built up. All she needed was a sign, something to make him let his guard down. Jim sighed and his shoulders fell. Though this was what Pam was looking for, it didn't feel good at all to see him like this. "Come on, think, Jim!" Pam teased, trying to lighten the mood.

"Um, well, like it's a big thing, you know," Jim stuttered, ducking his head. Jim ran a hand through his chestnut hair, tufts sticking up. "I think…you know what, never mind. It's a stupid idea."

"No," Pam protested. "Tell me."

"Well, honestly, I think that love is like…an incredible invisible bond between two people. It's like they're connected to each other, always. One person hurts, the other hurts for them. One's happy, the other is on the ground laughing right with them. You know? But it's also uncontrollable. You can't stop your heart from speeding up around her or stop yourself from thinking about her all the time. You can't and that's what hurts the most. The fact that you have no control over your feelings. That you can't make yourself stop loving someone." Jim forced a smile. "That's the downside of love. But there is an upside, like an amazing side. To know that you have someone by your side at all times, even when you're a jerk or stupid, is like…great. You're in love with someone and it makes you look forward to the next day, even if you have a math test." Pam laughed at this. "So yeah. That's love for me."

Pam beamed, shocked by his confession. "T-that is so…just…well, Riley's a lucky girl."

Jim raised an eyebrow, though his heart was fluttering. Did this mean Pam liked him? Or was she just being nice?

"I mean," Pam started, rushing her words out of nervousness. "I think it's great that you care that much about your girlfriend."

"Oh," Jim sighed. "Actually…ex-girlfriend."

Pam's emerald green eyes doubled in size before she realized that she was happy, when she should be sympathetic. "W-what happened? You guys seemed so happy together," Pam asked, hoping she didn't sound too eager.

Jim shrugged. "I realized that we were both using this relationship to," Jim paused, planning out his next words. "Substitute for the friendships that we both desperately needed and missed." Jim tilted his head to the side, attempting to gauge Pam's reaction.

Pam tried to show sympathy, but was pretty sure that her face was contorted into a cross between a smile and a frown. "I think that it's great that you guys had a clean break-up. You know, like instead of an ugly one."

Jim nodded. "Yeah, I guess."

Pam glanced around, making sure that no other students were watching them or listening in. "Jim," Pam started, lowering her voice. "I just wanted to let you know," she continued.

Jim raised a hand, motioning for her to stop. "Don't," he warned. "Please. Look, Pam, I don't need any more of your apologies if you're just gonna turn around and hurt me again. That's not how a friendship works."

"No," Pam cried. A few heads turned to them and Pam waved them off. She leaned in closer to Jim and lowered her voice again. "Please, just let me talk. I'm really so sorry, Jim, for everything. You have no idea. I don't know what happened to me! The mean words were just coming out and I had no control, and, and, I just lost it. I'm sorry, Jim." Jim didn't look up, just continued staring at his Converse sneakers as if they were the most interesting things on earth. "I said…" Pam started up again.

"I know," Jim replied. "Just save your voice for Roy's late night phone calls or something, okay? No need to keep repeating the same words over and over again."

"So…do you accept the apology or what?" Pam asked, forcing a smile.

Jim grimaced, fearing his next words. "Actually," Jim started, hesitating. "No."

Pam bit her lip, awkwardly. "Do you want to explain why…?"

"When someone says the same words over and over again, they begin not to mean anything. They become just words, without any emotion behind them. And every time you tell me that you're sorry, you turn around and do something mean again. It's like that old saying, 'actions speak louder than words.' And they do. Your words mean nothing to me right now because your actions are betraying them," Jim explained. "So yeah, that's all," Jim sighed, running a hand through his hair.

"Um, okay," Pam blushed, embarrassed. Luckily, the bell rang, saving her from an uncomfortable situation. Before Pam could say goodbye, Jim scooped up his backpack and darted towards the door, leaving her behind.

* * *

That night, Pam was waiting for Roy to call her, like he promised. It was already ten-thirty and she hadn't heard from him. This was unusual behavior coming from him; he was actually pretty good at calling when he said he would. Pam would think that he was at least thinking of her, after skipping school today and being away from her. Finally, after mulling over what to do, Pam picked up her cell and dialed his number. She drummed her fingers on the side of her bed, as the line rang. After a few more rings, it went to voicemail. "Hey Roy, it's me, Pam. Um, you haven't called yet, so I just wanted to say goodnight. Yeah, okay, bye now." Pam sighed, as she hung up, hoping she hadn't sounded too clingy. She knew, as most girls did, that guys hated clingy girlfriends. This made her think of Jim; was she still trying to hold onto him? Did he not like that? Pam groaned to herself, slipping under the covers.

* * *

Ring! Ring! Pam fumbled around in the darkness, in search of her phone. Ring! Ring! Pam looked at her alarm clock; it was three in the morning on a school night. Who the heck would be calling at this hour? Pam finally clasped her hands around the object, before placing it to her ear. "Hello?" she grumbled.

"Hey babe," Roy greeted.

Pam nearly dropped the phone, as she remembered the time. Jim would certainly never do this unless he had an emergency mission or if they were like ten. "Do you know what time it is?" Pam whisper-yelled. She knew her mom would forever hate Roy if she found out about this.

"Our time," Roy laughed.

Pam scoffed, ignoring his comment. "Where were you earlier?"

"Oh right. Sorry. Me and the guys were at Jake's house…his cousin had a fake ID…scored us some beer," Roy explained.

"Are you drunk?!" Pam accused.

"What? No!" Roy disagreed, hastily. "Course not. I don't drink."

Pam sighed, maybe in another universe Roy Anderson had never tasted beer in his life, but in this one he had, one time too many. "Um, sure. So, how was your day?"

"Great. We hung out at Jake's mainly, his parents weren't home," Roy replied, slurring his words a bit.

"Are you at Jake's right now?" Pam asked.

"I don't think so." Roy burped into the speaker.

Pam shook her head, knowing that he was probably drunk right now. "Brilliant," she spat sarcastically.

"Hey, hey, I'm not drunk," Roy assured her, sobering up a bit.

"Prove it," Pam challenged.

"Okay, ask me a question," Roy replied.

"What do you think," Pam paused. "Love means?"

"Easy," Roy laughed. "Finding a girl who's hot and likes to make out with you…and you just wanna make out all the time."

Pam sighed, remembering Jim's answer. She honestly doubted that Roy's would change if he was sober. "I have to go back to bed, Roy."

"But wait, baby…"

"Good night," Pam sighed.

* * *

**So what did you think? Good or bad? Boring or interesting? Please leave a review. Sorry that I updated kinda late again. I was pretty busy but we have Midwinter Break this week, so I should be able to prewrite the last couple chapters. Yes, there is only a few chapters left of this, sadly. I hope that everyone had a good Valentine's Day (I didn't…stupid Glee writers) and that your boyfriends were smarter than some other guys *cough* Roy *cough*. Well, bye, Harry Potter's on TV. R&R! ;)**


	20. Nice Guys Finish Last

Chapter 20- Nice Guys Finish Last

**Author's Note- Hi everybody! Thanks for all the kind reviews last chapter, there was a dip again, but I like hearing from those who did review. Sorry that I'm just a bit late in updating…basketball's been keeping me busy again. From now on, check for updates on Saturdays, Sundays, or Mondays. Well, this chapter takes place on Thursday (the day before the championship game). So, basically where we left off. Here's the chapter, enjoy! ;)**

* * *

"Hey, Pam!" Roy yelled down the hall. Pam sighed, turning around. She was on her way to homeroom and she hadn't seen Roy yet all morning. Pam assumed-or at least hoped-that Roy would be sorry for calling last night. She had skipped out on getting a ride from her boyfriend this morning, instead walking to school alone. Roy jogged up to her, out of breath. "Where were you this morning?"

"Oh, I…I walked to school," Pam admitted, smoothing out an imaginary wrinkle on her shirt.

Roy covered his left ear. "Shh, be a little quieter." Pam took note of his aviator sunglasses and figured he was still hung-over. "I-I came by your house this morning but your mom said you already left. Why did you walk, babe?"

Pam attempted to hide her smile as she imagined her mom's reaction to her hung-over boyfriend showing up at her door, at eight in the morning. "I had to be at school early for art club," Pam lied. Her art club meetings were after school, plus she hadn't even gone to one since she started dating Roy. "It's no big deal."

Roy nodded. "Oh yeah…I just wanted to say I'm sorry for calling so late last night," he mumbled. "I might've been a little out of it."

Pam sighed; she would think that after all the girls Roy's dated, he would at least be half-decent at apologies. "You mean you were drunk."

"A little." Roy held Pam's face in his hands, forcing her to look up at him. "Look, Pam, I'm really sorry. It won't happen again, I promise."

"It's not that," Pam said. "It's just all these little things adding up, you know? And most of them have to do with…alcohol and skipping school."

"Fine," Roy grumbled. "I won't do either, anymore. Promise."

"Okay," Pam agreed, as Roy leaned in for a kiss. Pam still got butterflies in her stomach whenever he kissed her. There was no denying that he was attractive, though, there was something missing. Maybe it was the fact that his shoelaces were always tied or that his hair was too neat for her liking. Or maybe it was that he never wanted to play pranks. Whatever it was, Pam found herself needing it. As Roy attempted to slide his tongue in, Pam pushed away. "We're in the middle of the hallway," she muttered.

"Sorry." Roy took her hand and led her to their homeroom. "See? I'm not skipping homeroom today!"

Pam rolled her eyes; he acted like this was the greatest thing ever. "Oh yay!" Pam exclaimed, faking enthusiasm. "You deserve a Nobel Peace Prize."

Roy looked confuse. "What's that prize for again?"

"Let's just make it to homeroom with you in one piece," Pam suggested, annoyed. "Do you think you can handle that?"

"I can handle anything, hon," Roy said. Only he couldn't. He couldn't handle being compared to Jim all the time.

"I hope so," Pam murmured to herself. They walked the rest of the way in silence; the only sign that the other was there was the intertwining of the hands. When they entered the room, Roy began taking Pam over to their group of friends. Maggie and Julie started squealing about the championship and the best after-parties. Pam looked past Grace's shoulder and met Jim's eye. He was sitting alone, most likely waiting for Mark or someone to walk in. Pam offered Jim a small smile and was surprised as he smiled back, lifting his hand in a wave. Pam glanced back to make sure that there wasn't someone behind her. She sighed stupidly; Mark was walking in the room…Jim was waving at him, not her. Pam hadn't realized how much she wanted him to just wave at her; until she noticed that he wasn't. And that stung, a lot. The bell rang, interrupting her thoughts and her friends' constant chatter.

"Okay everyone, sit down," their teacher, Ms. Drew instructed. Students dashed to their seats but the chatter didn't die down. "Why is it so loud in here?" Her eyes landed on Roy and his friends. "Oh look, they cared to stop by today, everyone."

"Yeah, lucky for you," Roy grumbled.

"Were you just volunteering to work by yourself on this project?" Ms. Drew asked.

"What? No. What project?" Roy stammered.

"Well, we started an assignment yesterday," she started. "Everyone already has a partner but for the people who weren't here yesterday…well, you guys can just work alone, I think."

Roy groaned and Jim stifled his laughter. Roy spun around in his seat and glared at Jim. "You think that's funny, Halpert? Huh? I don't see any girls knocking down your door to be partners."

"Actually…your girl did. Pam's my partner," Jim smirked. Pam couldn't help but smile; it seemed that the old Jim was coming back to her –well, at least to Roy.

"Babe, why are you partners with that retard?" Roy demanded, now turning back to his girlfriend.

"Hey!" Their teacher stepped in. "Mr. Anderson, end of discussion, okay? I assigned them as partners."

"Oh," Roy mumbled to himself. "That's why."

"Okay, everyone go back to your partners except for those who are working alone," Ms. Drew instructed. "This will be the last class for you guys to come up with a definition for your word."

"What's my word?" Roy blurted.

"Humility," she replied. "You need some, desperately." The class roared with laughter and Roy's cheeks reddened. Pam was probably laughing the hardest; she doubted that Roy even knew what the word meant. "Well, move along guys; get in your groups quickly."

Pam rose from her seat but she stopped when she saw Jim motioning that he was going to come over. He gave her a small half-smile that could've passed as a grimace when he reached her desk. "Hey," he greeted quietly.

Pam sighed. At this point she would give anything to be best friends with Jim again, anything. She hated how he had his guard up all the time now when he was around her –if he was even around her. It made her wonder about the unthinkable question, the one she kept denying in her head. Why was she even staying with Roy if it meant losing Jim? By now, Pam honestly didn't know why. But she herself couldn't dump Roy Anderson, could she? She shook the thoughts from her head and smiled sweetly at Jim. "Hi Jim," she greeted. "So, I wrote down everything that you said yesterday, if you want to use that."

"Sure," Jim agreed. "What about you, though?"

"What about me?" Pam repeated.

"What do you think love is?" Jim questioned.

"I don't know," Pam replied. But she had an idea. It was the feeling she got when she was with Jim; that strong tug at her heartstrings and warm feeling. It was that familiar ness and happiness that came with him. It was…it was Jim. For Pam, love was Jim, and always had been. She tried to convince herself that it was a friendship kind of love but now wasn't so sure.

"Oh," Jim sighed. He was hoping for a more honest answer like his had been. But he should know by now that Pam was no longer obligated to give him honest answers. "Okay."

"Well, I mean," Pam started up again. "I can't put it into words but I have a feeling of what it is."

"Right," Jim said. "It's what you feel with Roy, right?"

Pam shook her head. "No, not really. Actually, it's with someone else."

Jim's eyes widened. Could she be talking about him? "Are…are you talking about your family?" Jim asked.

Pam hesitated. "Yeah, that's it." She hated lying, but there was no way she could tell him the truth in this situation. Plus, what kind of best friends loved each other? Especially if one of them had a boyfriend. Pam decided that she wasn't in love with Jim; she just loved him…two entirely different things. She was in love with Roy; she loved Jim like she would a brother. Well, if he would even talk to her again.

"Cool," Jim mumbled.

"So, uh, guess we're done early," Pam commented.

"Guess we are," Jim agreed. He glanced at the clock; there was fifteen minutes left of what was going to be an extremely awkward conversation with his ex-best friend.

"Are you excited for the big game tomorrow?" Pam exclaimed, happily.

"Yeah, I guess."

Pam nudged his shoulder, playfully. "Come on, Halpert, it's the state championship! You might never get this far again."

Jim finally smiled at the thought of basketball. "Well, yeah I'm excited. I think we actually have a chance of winning."

"Of course you do!" Pam cried. "You're practically a mini-Lebron; you have this in the bag."

Jim laughed and Pam smiled, she had missed that laugh so much. "At least the game's at home."

"I'll be there," Pam assured him.

"Why wouldn't you be? Roy's playing," Jim replied, a hint of sadness in his tone.

"And so are you." Pam looked deep into his ocean tide eyes and took a deep breath. "I'm going to the game for you too, Jim. You may have stopped being friends with me and won't accept my apology…and I completely respect that. But, I still care about you…and consider you my best friend."

Jim slowly nodded. "I really…I really want to be friends with you again, Pam…so much. But I feel like I can't trust you anymore. Those other times that you apologized; you just turned around and made fun of me again. And that's not cool. So, I guess what I'm saying that that I just need some time."

"Time sounds perfect," Pam smiled. She caught Roy glaring at them and felt like puking. "Jim, you've never been drunk before, have you?"

Jim raised an eyebrow. "No, of course not. Why?"

"Just wondering," Pam mused. "I have a hypothetical question."

"Shoot," Jim offered.

"If someone you were friends with was kind of bad for you and then there was another person you were friends with that was kind of good for you, and you couldn't be with both of them, then who would you choose?" Pam asked, hoping he wouldn't pick up on the actual situation.

"Well, maybe you could hang out with them both in secret. So the other would never know." Jim flashed her a smile.

"Okay, if that wasn't an option, then who?" Pam wondered.

"Well, the good one, duh," Jim laughed. "Why would you stay with someone who's bad for you when you have someone who's good for you dying for your attention too? Sounds like a no-brainer to me."

Pam nodded. "That's what I thought." The bell rang, ending their chat. "Well, I'll see you tomorrow."

Jim slung his backpack over his shoulder and began walking towards the door. "See you around."

Pam couldn't help but wince at his 'see you around' instead of 'see you tomorrow.' She knew that she hurt him by choosing the bad guy. But sometimes, life and love just weren't that easy. What were you supposed to do when the bad guy was great for you in the eyes of society? And the good guy looked even worse to society because of the bad guy? Were you supposed to do the right thing and be with the good guy? Was there even a right thing to do? Pam guessed that all girls chose the bad guys because they were scared. Scared of actually being with someone who cared, someone who was good for them. Pam wondered if that's why she was with Roy. She shook her head; she was supposed to be with Roy. That's how things were supposed to turn out; Roy was just different than Jim. Jim was a nice guy and Roy was a…well, bad guy. What was that saying again? Nice guys finish last. Well, maybe in Pam's book, a nice guy could finish first for once. Because honestly, the nice guys are the good guys, and the bad boys are the bad guys. In the end, a nice guy is going to be there for you; whether he's your co-worker, a classmate, or your best friend. He'll be the one to come over with chick flicks when you're sick or hold your hand in front of his friends or tell you're beautiful when you look like crap. A bad boy would be the one to give you a call when you're sick, wondering why you didn't show at a party or ignore you when he's with his friends or tell you 'you look okay' when all you want is to be beautiful for him. So yeah, Pam decided that a certain nice guy deserved some recognition. But somehow, she didn't want to lose the bad boy either. Unfortunately, there's no way for them to tie in a girl's eyes.

* * *

**So what did you think? Good or bad? Boring or interesting? Please leave a review, since they keep dropping in numbers. So sorry that I haven't updated in over a week, I've been really busy with basketball. Honestly, I write as much as I can but I've had an insane schedule lately and I feel really bad. I think there will be about 2-3 chapters left of this. Hope you enjoy and think that this isn't too bad. R&R! ;)**


	21. Game Time

Chapter 21- Game Time

**Author's Note- Thanks for all the kind reviews last chapter! You guys are so nice and I'm so incredibly sorry for the wait. My grades are really bad right now so my parents grounded me and then ungrounded me and then grounded me again. And now I'm only allowed to use my laptop during the weekends until my grades go up. So it's very topsy-turvy in my world right now. :P Well, this chapter is from where we left off; it's Friday morning, the day of the championship. Here's the chapter, enjoy! ;)**

* * *

It was Friday morning, the day of the championship, and Jim was walking to his locker. Already, he and the basketball team had been greeted by high-fives and fist bumps, on their paths to homeroom. It was a huge thing to have your high school's basketball team go to the state championship. So that the other students could prepare and go to the game; the school had a half-day. Jim reached his locker, where Mark was already waiting for him.

"Dude, are you psyched or what?" Mark exclaimed, as Jim turned the dial to his locker.

Jim laughed, pulling off his backpack. "I'm pretty excited." Mark nodded, enthusiastically. "I take it you are too."

"Totally," Mark grinned.

Jim grabbed his notebook for homeroom and a note fluttered to the floor. He picked it up, about to see what it was, when Mark spoke up. "Ooh, a love letter already? We're not even champs yet."

Jim rolled his eyes, shoving the note deep into his jeans pocket. Looks like he'd have to read it later. "It's not a love letter," he sighed.

"Then what is it?" Mark challenged.

"If you stopped breathing down my neck, then maybe I'd know," Jim replied, following his friend down the hall.

"Okay, okay," Mark relented, smirking. As they rounded the corner, Mark started rambling about an episode of _Modern Family_ that Jim had missed. But all Jim could think about was who the note could be from. Riley was out of the picture, they had broken up in what seemed like ages ago, and they barely saw each other now. Plus, she didn't even know his locker combo. Unlike someone else he knew…Pam. Sure, they hadn't really been on speaking terms lately but Pam always came through in the end. Maybe it was a good luck wish from her. Maybe it was a confession of her true love for him. Or maybe Jim was just losing his mind. As they walked into their homeroom, he wasn't really sure. The bell rang immediately and Jim took a seat beside Mark. When Ms. Drew started talking about some rewards system or something like that, Jim whipped out the crumpled up sheet of paper. It read; _Great Ogre Ogles Dog. Leprechaun Underwear Calf Kite. _

Or in their language; Good Luck. There was no signature, but Jim didn't need one. He instantly recognized Pam's handwriting and no one else knew their secret code. He beamed at the fact that she actually cared. Sure, she might be talking to Roy right now and watching him out of the corner of her eyes; but at least he got that. Jim was starting to think that her relationship with Roy was not going to last much longer. Pam made a split second of eye contact with Jim and Jim waved at her, smiling. Pam grinned and waved back. Roy caught her waving and shot Jim a hard glare. As the class droned on, Jim and Pam shared looks. It was almost like old times; shared eye rolls and raised eyebrows until Roy's glares would bring them back down to reality. When the bell rang, Jim bolted to Pam's side. "I'll meet you at my locker," Pam muttered to Roy. Roy looked at Jim and then stormed out of the classroom.

"So," Jim started.

"So…" Pam mocked playfully. "Are you like super excited? I'm like ecstatic and I'm not even on the team."

Jim laughed nervously. "Yeah, I can't wait."

"Wish you could zoom through the rest of the day, right?" Pam replied.

Jim smiled at her, his blue-green eyes lighting up. "Only if you would fly through it with me," he admitted.

"Sounds like a deal," Pam giggled. Pam mentally slapped herself; she never giggled. What was wrong with her?

Jim pumped his fist in the air. "Awesome," he joked. Jim remembered that he was supposed to be mad at Pam, not joking around with her. Then why was it so easy to just go back to normal? Was it supposed to be? Jim didn't think so.

Pam opened her mouth to respond when a hand clasped her shoulder, spinning her around. Before Pam could even blink, Roy's soft lips were on hers. After a few seconds, Pam remembered where they were and she backed off a bit. "My locker's over here, silly," Roy teased, obviously enjoying making Jim squirm.

"Right," Pam breathed, still lightheaded from their kiss.

Jim coughed awkwardly. Pam blushed, almost forgetting about their conversation a few seconds ago. "You two are both going to do so great in the game today," Pam beamed, trying to lighten the mood.

"I know I will," Roy started. "Halpert might…if he would stop making faces at my girlfriend in the stands."

"Why are you so possessive of her?" Jim demanded, taking a step closer to Roy.

"Why not? Jealous much?" Roy smirked, putting an arm around Pam.

Jim balled his hand into a fist and Pam could see that he was getting ticked. He used to get like this sometimes when they were younger; the end result was usually a black eye or bloody lip delivered by Tom or Pete. Pam certainly didn't want a fight to spark between her ex-best friend and current boyfriend. "Roy!" she cut off. "Leave him alone."

"Babe, his little schoolboy crush on you is getting frickin' annoying." Roy bopped his head towards Jim, as if to say _come at me, I dare you. _

"I don't have a crush on Pam!" Jim shot back, each word a bit louder than the last. "Just get that through your big head, okay?"

"Well, that's not what Pam told me," Roy laughed, enjoying this.

Jim's eyes widened and he glanced at Pam, expectantly. "I didn't say anything, Jim. I swear," Pam protested. She glared at Roy but Jim had already walked away, clearly pissed.

"Why would you say that?" Pam snapped.

Roy took a step back, surprised by her sudden anger. "I was just standing up for us."

"No, you weren't!" Pam sighed. "You always have to push him down and I just want to know why."

"I'm sorry," Roy mumbled.

"Don't say it to me," Pam grumbled. "Say it to Jim."

"I will," Roy promised. "Later."

Pam ran a hand through her hair, messing it up a bit. "Fine. When do you guys have to be back here for your game?"

"Two," Roy informed her. "It's a three-thirty tip-off, so we still have time to party before."

"No," Pam said. "Don't go to any parties beforehand, it's just going to lead to bad things."

Roy groaned. "Buzzkill, but fine." He took her hand and began walking to their next class. "I'll just hang out with my beautiful girlfriend instead."

Pam giggled. How was it that she could hate him but love him at the same time? It was just going to make whatever happened tonight so much harder. Everyone was telling Pam that Roy was a bad influence; her mom, Jim, her sister, everyone. Maybe it was time to let go, or maybe it was just time to hold on tighter. She'd find out later, at the game.

* * *

**So what did you think? Good or bad? Was it boring? I felt it kind of was. There's going to be like 3 more chapters of this! Only three but I'll be writing a few more Office stories in the future, if anyone's interested. Please leave me a review. And I'm so sorry about the late update! R&R! ;)**


	22. Out of Bounds

Chapter 22- Out of Bounds

**Author's Note- I'll explain the late update in the bottom A/N. Btw, I play basketball so I tried to lessen the basketball talk as much as possible and make it easy to read for those who don't play. Enjoy. ;)**

* * *

The referee for the championship walked to the half court with the ball tucked under his arm. "I want a good, clean game, boys. Understand?" the ref said.

All the boys nodded and a few responded with "yes sirs." The centers lined up to take jump ball and the rest of the players spaced out around the circle. Both Roy and Jim were starting the game. Jim because he was one of the stars of the team and Roy by default because of the injured player, nevertheless, Jim was hoping they could forget their differences in order to win the game. The stands were already hooting and hollering as the ref blew his whistle and tossed the ball in the air to start the game. Scranton's center tipped it back to Roy and he took it up the court. As soon as he reached the arc, he faked a pass to their point guard and then whipped the ball around to Jim. Jim was so surprised to be passed the ball that he nearly dropped it. Luckily, he didn't, instead quickly positioning his hands and firing a nice jumper which landed cleanly in the net.

The crowd went wild as this was a great way to begin the game but the only voice Jim heard was Pam from the front row. "Great shot, Jim!" she yelled, sitting with her new ditzy friends.

Jim looked over but quickly noticed that the other team's guard was carrying the ball right behind him. Jim spun around on his heels and cleanly swatted the ball from him. He took a few dribbles before laying it in from the right side. The score was now Titans 4- Blue Devils 0. Jim grinned; it looked like they were setting a great tempo for the rest of the game. Sometimes all you needed was a good momentum at the beginning, and that would be enough to carry you to the end.

* * *

Maggie turned to Pam. "The boy next door's playing well…it's kinda hot," Maggie smirked. Grace rolled her eyes but Julie nodded approvingly.

"You mean Jim?" Pam double checked. Right now, the last thing she wanted was Jim to become part of this "group." Not that she didn't want to be in his group of his friends, that wasn't it at all. She just didn't want popularity to do what it did to her, to him. Not that it ever would, though. Jim would never act like that, not in a million years. Plus, he would never even want to be in that group, it just wasn't him.

"Duh," Maggie replied, snapping her gum. "He's like scoring…on our basket."

"Then we would be losing points," Grace sighed. She turned to face Pam, pushing a strand of chestnut hair behind her ear. "You'd think with all the games she goes to, she would know something about basketball."

"I know plenty," Maggie whined, as they all giggled. "Laugh all you want but he's cute."

Pam bit her lip, already deciding she didn't want to be a part of this conversation. These days, when it came to Jim's "cuteness," she had to remind herself that she was with Roy and they were barely even on speaking terms. "I'm going to go get some popcorn from the concession stand. You guys want anything?" she announced, standing up.

"No, I'm good," Julie replied, as the others nodded agreeing.

Pam picked up her Vera Bradley wallet and Maggie spoke up once again. "Hurry up, Pam! You don't want to miss much of this game," she urged.

"I'll be quick," Pam laughed. The girls watched her get in line behind some hyper freshmen guys.

Maggie turned to the girls. "Guys, I know that some stuff has been going on between Jim and Pam but do you think they might end up together?"

Julie tilted her head. "I don't know…they've been BFFs for like forever. Ooh! Like one of those rom-coms when the two friends hook up and fall in love after all that time," Julie suggested.

"Or," Grace started, rolling her eyes. "Like they haven't even been on speaking terms since she started dating Roy and I'm pretty sure Jim's heartbroken."

"Ohhhh," the two girls said in unison.

"That makes more sense," Maggie said, nodding to herself.

"Yeah, because it's true," Grace replied, watching Jim sink a three-pointer.

"Do you think that Roy's going to be a jerk at the after parties?" Julie asked, honestly.

"You mean in general?" Grace questioned. "Because then it's a yes."

"She means to Pam, dummy," Maggie interrupted. "And yeah, I think so."

"I know," Julie sighed. "It seems like he keeps getting worse and worse around her. They used to be such a cute couple but now it seems like he's forcing her into the relationship."

"Well," Grace started. "Isn't that how a typical relationship with one Roy Anderson works?"

Maggie laughed. "Yeah, definitely."

"If he tries something with her tonight, I'm going to get our guys to beat the crap out of him," Julie smiled.

"If Jim doesn't get to him first," Grace laughed, as well as the other girls. Grace noticed Pam approaching them with a bag of popcorn and quickly changed the subject. "Well, they're getting ahead quickly."

Pam took her seat beside Maggie and popped a few pieces into her mouth. "Mmhmm," she agreed, swallowing.

Indeed the Titans were getting ahead quickly; the score was already 18-4, and only seven minutes into the game. Jim had all their baskets except two, one of which was Roy's; the other was the point guard's. It was quite early in the game, but the Titans held the upper hand in game momentum and it was safe to say that they might have this in the bag. But of course, it was a championship so momentum can shift easily, especially when both teams want it so badly.

The girls continued talking about the team's chances and what after parties the boys were thinking of taking them to and soon the first period was over. Their coach pulled out all of the starting five for a much needed break after ten minutes of non-stop play and threw in the second string.

* * *

Jim sat down and took a long swig of his Gatorade. The empty seat beside him seemed like an invitation to Roy, who gladly plopped down beside him. "Nice job, Halpert," Roy greeted, grinning.

Jim raised an eyebrow, confused. Just a few hours ago, Roy was yelling at him for having a "schoolboy crush" on his girlfriend. And Roy had never been exactly nice to Jim before, not even before he was dating Pam. Basically, Roy had always been a jerk, no surprise there. "Thanks, you too," Jim replied.

The Titans' second string center just dunked down low and added another two points to the board. They were now up by twenty points and it was starting to look like an easy win. "Can you believe this is the second best team in the state?" Roy laughed. "We're crushing them."

Jim shrugged. "They could catch up."

Roy nudged his shoulder. "Lighten up, Debbie Downer, we're up by twenty. Even Pam's always saying that you're uptight."

Jim furrowed his brow. Pam talked about him? On second thought, Pam thought he was "uptight"? When had he ever been uptight? He was always playing pranks and joking around with everyone and he had always been that way. Jim rolled his eyes, figuring Roy was just saying that to say something. "Oh well," Jim shrugged. "I try not to be."

"I mean," Roy started, getting a little arrogant. "Pam likes a guy who goes with the flow, you know? One who's really laidback, maybe a little bit of a party animal."

Jim bit his lip before replying carefully. The last thing their coach would want was tension between the players during the championship. Especially since their game was on the local TV stations and radio stations. It was kind of a big deal. "Right…because laidback and party animal go hand in hand," Jim said, a little forcefully.

"In my world they do," Roy smirked. "And I guess since I am her world, they do too in her book."

Jim almost felt his gag reflex go off. Her world? What the heck was going on between Pam and Roy? He'd heard some talk that there was trouble in paradise and more than he'd want to admit, Jim was really hoping there was. Jim brushed off Roy's dig, licked his lips, and turned back to the game. It was around five and a half minutes into the quarter when their coach barked the starting five's names. He ordered them to go back in and they all kneeled by the check-in table. At the next dead ball, they all entered the game.

For the first few plays, things were going great. Jim scored twice and their guards also scored but as their point guard dribbled the ball down the court, Jim looked over and saw Roy glaring at him. The ball was quickly fired down to Jim at the blocks and Jim found Roy open on the wing. Roy shot the ball and it bounced off the rim. Jim bounded up and snatched it, dunking it in one motion. The crowd roared and both Jim and Roy could hear Pam screaming for Jim. He had made Roy's shot look more like an off-balance pass and he could tell Roy didn't like that one bit.

"Stop showing off," Roy snapped, as they matched up on defense.

"Don't be so uptight," Jim grinned, intercepting a pass to his man. He saw their point guard, Timmy, running down the court and Jim took two dribbles before launching the ball as if it were a football. Timmy caught it just as he reached the hoop, making a nice left handed layup.

"That's it!" Roy growled.

The rest of the players from both teams were now heading down to their end of the court, where Jim and Roy were. Jim stepped in close to Roy and spoke up. "Look, we leave our issues off the court, not on it, okay? We're playing one of the most important games of our lives right now and I could honestly care less about fighting with you."

Roy didn't say anything, just gave Jim another scowl and headed over to his man. Jim nodded to himself, figuring that he'd just settled their arguing.

* * *

"Hey…" Pam tapped Maggie on the shoulder. "What just happened between Jim and Roy?" It could be obvious to most everyone in the stands that the two boys had just had a pretty heated talk.

"I smell tension," Julie said.

"I smell fighting over a girl," Maggie added.

"I sme.." Grace started, before Pam cut her off.

"Okay, okay, enough with the smelling," she laughed. The other girls smiled at her and Pam realized something. Somehow, along the way, Pam had really developed a friendship with these girls. Sure, they had their differences, but she realized that they really were friends. Not just the boy's basketball team groupies but friends. And for that, Pam smiled.

"I don't know what's going on between them but they need to cut the crap," Maggie declared, raising her Slushie.

"Yeah, really," Julie agreed. "They can fight over you any old day, just not in the middle of the championship."

"Or they could just not fight over me at all," Pam sighed.

"Well, you're a catch, girl," Grace smiled, nudging her.

* * *

Roy buried a jumper just as the halftime buzzer sounded and the crowd applauded. In the last few minutes, Jim and Roy had cleared their differences and worked together with the team to spread their lead even further at a cushion of twenty-five points. The players walked back to the bench and picked up water bottles and Gatorades, following their coach into the locker room.

Roy brushed by Jim, purposely shoving him with his shoulder. "Hey!" Jim called, standing where he was as Roy turned around.

"What?" Roy replied. "Did you want to know what Pam and I were going to do tonight or something?"

That was it for Jim. A fire in him ignited as Roy had crossed the line. Pam and him might have not been friends in almost two months but that was irrelevant. Pam was Pam and he loved her. Because, honestly, you can never forget about someone you love. Especially when you're still in love with them. And in Jim's case, he still was, and there was no use in denying it to himself now. Not anymore. Because when you love someone, they ought to know. Maybe you don't exactly ever have to say anything to them, but you can show each other in actions. And that's enough. The fact that both of you know without ever saying anything.

"You better not do _anything _with her," Jim said, raising his voice and not caring in the least bit. "Because I will beat the crap out of you."

Roy laughed. "You have no business with her anymore. You guys aren't even friends so I'm pretty sure I can do whatever the heck I want, pal."

Jim balled his hands into fists and before he could stop himself, he cocked his arm back and punched Roy right in the face. He didn't even think, it was just a lightning fast reaction. Roy stumbled backwards, clutching his jaw, where Jim's fist had been planted a few seconds ago. "Hey man, are you okay?" Jim asked, walking towards him with caution.

Jim took another step closer and didn't even see Roy's fist coming. He felt a sharp pain in his mouth and tasted blood. He felt like everything was spinning way too fast. Jim saw Pam sitting on the bleachers with her hands covering her mouth, just like practically everyone else watching the brawl between the two of them. Pam wouldn't want him to keep fighting, even if he was defending her. He had already thrown the first punch and that was bad enough. Jim saw a blurry Roy shaking his hand out and then looking up. Their eyes connected for a second and then Roy went barreling into Jim's gut.

* * *

**And everybody was kung fu fighting…hahahaha just kidding. I hope you guys liked this chapter and there will only be a few more left of this. If you guys are even still reading this. If you are, would you leave a review? Because that would like totally make my day. ;)**

** So about the EXTREMELY late update of over three months…I'll explain as promised. :P I was grounded from my laptop for the last few months of school because of slipping grades. :P We got out of school on June 13****th**** and from there I was totally packed with friends and just wanted to relax a little. But now I'm back! If anyone cares lol. So expect regular updates now…on Wednesdays. Is today Wednesday? I think so. So in a week from now, expect another chapter. **

** I love you all! Please review ;) (bonus points for anyone who realizes the cliché title this chapter haha)**


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